Ladybard
by Slayergirl
Summary: Spike and Buffy are forced to find out more about themselves, due to a wish... this will have consequences that could change Sunnydale forever... Now finished! Rating is for some violence and language towards the end. Thanks to Joss, as ever...
1. Prologue

Prologue… the rest will become more – um, interesting – later on. Please, bear with me, this is a growing project, long way to go….  
  
***************  
  
  
  
As she trudged through the cemetery, Buffy wondered why she couldn't get the blond vampire, stalking quietly beside her, out of her mind. 'Apart from the fact he always seems to be beside me,' she grumped to herself. It unnerved her. She didn't know how to deal with it, so just ended up hitting out at him, yelling at him, generally just taking it out on him.  
  
The said blond vampire had no idea of her thoughts as he wondered how he could make her love him. Or at the very least like him – just a little – rather than merely tolerating him. 'Oh, and stop her beating me up and yelling at me.' Half the time he had no idea what he'd done. 'The other half,' he grinned to himself, 'Well, she was oh so easy to wind up, it would be a shame not to…!'  
  
Suddenly Buffy stiffened, hearing a sound behind her. 'Sounded like – laughter. A nice sound, though, not threatening…' Spike had obviously heard it, too, and turned round as she did. They gasped at the sight in front of them.  
  
"Like – the northern lights…" stammered out Spike. He'd seen them, once, on his travels with Drusilla. 'She'd loved them… pretty lights…' They pulsated gently round the two patrollers, colours merging in and out of each other. Without realising it, they both reached out their hands to each other, over-awed.  
  
Soon the light, constantly changing and pulsating, began to hurt their eyes, making them dizzy. They closed their eyes, hearing music that was as beautiful as the strange light. Peaceful, lulling music… 


	2. Chapter 1

They woke in a heap on the ground, still holding hands.  
  
"What the hell happened?" muttered Spike, trying to wake up enough to open his eyes.  
  
"Lights. Music. Then…" 'Dreams, such wonderful dreams…' "You're still holding my hand."  
  
"Mm? Oh, sorry." He let go of her hand.  
  
"And where are we, anyway?" She asked, having opened her eyes.  
  
Spike squinted at the landscape. "Can't tell exactly. But another dimension."  
  
"Another… how do you know that?" she asked, aghast.  
  
"Look, no smoke!" he said, showing her his hand. She looked at him blankly. "Hello, Slayer, me vampire. Me in sunlight. Me not burning up!!"  
  
"Oh. Yes." She hadn't registered that it was day. Hadn't noticed they were now sitting in a meadow full of flowers, either. "This is one weird place!"  
  
"Maybe. Pretty, though," he replied, considering the landscape. "Love to know where we are…"  
  
"And you shall!" The soft, silvery voice came from behind them, where a slender young woman, dressed in a shimmering green dress, stood listening to them and watching. "Welcome, Lady and Bard. I am Estrellita."  
  
"Lady and… well, Slayer and Vampire would be more accurate, but our names are…" began Spike.  
  
"I know your names. I know who and what you are. But while you are here, you are Lady and Bard. They are your titles."  
  
"Our – titles?" Buffy stammered.  
  
Estrellita smiled at her. "You will understand in time. For now, all you need to know is that you are, indeed, in another dimension. However long you spend here, it will take no time in your own dimension. Nothing here can harm you."  
  
"But – why are we here? How did we get here?" asked Buffy, bewildered.  
  
"First, you shall be given fresh clothing, and break your fast. As you eat, I will explain to you. Come, follow me!"  
  
They followed the dark-haired form in silence, unable to disobey the command in the star-coloured eyes. She led them to a large building, which surrounded a huge tree, and showed them into a room.  
  
"Here you will find clothes to fit you," she said, motioning towards a large clothes chest. "And this is where you will sleep for as long as you stay here," she added, before leaving them alone in the room.  
  
They stared at each other. And the room. 'And the four-poster double bed…' they both thought, one groaning inwardly, the other beginning to think he might just like this dimension…  
  
"Oh, God." She stared at the bed. "You have to be kidding me, we…"  
  
"We don't have much choice," he said, trying to keep the gleefulness out of his voice.  
  
She sighed. "Well, let's see about some clothes…" She opened up the chest. Two sets of clothes, neatly laid out. Midnight blue shot through with silver. She handed Spike his clothes. "Turn your back," she instructed, before turning her back and changing.  
  
The dress fitted her perfectly, clinging to each and every curve, flattering her. She couldn't help noticing that Spike's clothes were – she gulped – 'equally – uh – flattering…'  
  
He didn't seem to be too impressed by the lacy cuffs, muttering something about "Like something Angel would wear…" until he caught her gaze. 'Oh, she likes it…' a surprised voice in his head whispered. 'Now if I'd known that…' "Looks good on you, love," he said, looking her up and down appreciatively, making her feel horribly uncomfortable. She tried to hit him, but simply found that her hand stopped a few inches from him, as though there was a barrier.  
  
"What…"  
  
Estrellita had entered silently. "As I said, nothing here can harm you. Including each other. Anything you try to touch with the intention to harm you will be unable to touch."  
  
"So – she can't hurt me?"  
  
"No." Spike was relieved. "And you cannot hurt her. Or anything else."  
  
"But – we were holding hands earlier…" wondered Buffy aloud.  
  
Estrellita smiled. "You touched with no intention to harm. You may touch in friendship, in kindness. But it is impossible to harm and be harmed here."  
  
"Oh." She almost wished she hadn't asked. 'Touching Spike in friendship… Spike touching her! Suppose he… no, that would be harming me… so basically,' she mused, 'they could only really touch each other if they wanted to. If both of them wanted to…'  
  
"Precisely." Buffy jumped as Estrellita read her mind. "But now, come and eat. And I will explain."  
  
She led them to a table, which positively groaned with food. New, fresh, soft white bread and thick honey, large slabs of yellow butter, slices of cold meat, cheese, chicken legs, baskets of fruit, and all sorts of delicacies. Buffy realised that she was starving, and sat down willingly at the table. Spike sat beside her looking slightly dazed. "Why – don't I want blood?" he asked aloud.  
  
Estrellita smiled. "This is a different dimension. Here, you are not a vampire. Here, you are Bard, a singer and poet." She poured some crystal- clear liquid into cups and handed it to them. "Drink of the dew of my land!" she said. "It is sweeter and more delicious than anything you will ever taste…" 'Except each other,' reminded an inner voice. 'That's why they're here…'  
  
They sipped it gingerly as if afraid of a trap, but finding what she said was true, began to eat and drink with delight. 'Everything seemed to taste better, here, somehow,' thought Buffy, as she licked the thick, golden honey from her fingers. She caught Spike looking at her as she did, and blushed, dropping her eyes.  
  
Estrellita remained standing, and started speaking to them. "There is no time here. You cannot age or die. There is no evil here, no harm can befall you. There is no deceit here, you cannot lie…" She saw the looks of horror on their faces. "Though you may choose whether or not to speak or be silent." She smiled at their relief. "Here, there is only pleasure and happiness, of which you can never tire."  
  
"So why are we here?" asked Buffy, trying to avoid looking at Spike after the last comment. No way were pleasure and happiness involving HIM as far as she was concerned!  
  
"A spell was laid on you, that you might understand your own true selves, your true feelings, your true desires. Admittedly, I don't think the Wiccan had this in mind, but…"  
  
"Willow did this?!" exclaimed Buffy, knowing that Tara would never have done it. "Red-headed witch?"  
  
Estrellita nodded her assent. "As I said, she probably did not intend this. I doubt she is even aware of the existence of this dimension. But wishes can have such power … beware what you wish for!" She paused. "I said there is no time. Time here seems to pass, in that there are days and nights, dusks and dawns. But you will never be older, however long you stay here. And you will return to your own dimension in exactly the same time and place as you left, when it is time to return there…"  
  
"Which will be when?" Buffy wasn't happy about roaming around with Spike for eternity. 'Even here.'  
  
"That depends on how fast a learner you are!" she laughed, her laughter like the music of tinkling bells or a running stream. "Now, explore my land, go wherever you will. When you are hungry or tired, your feet and minds will guide you back here. At the end of the day, place your clothes back in the chest, and fresh ones will be there in the morning. There will always be fresh food here for you, and plenty of it. From now on, though, you will see me but rarely … until I come to send you back to your own dimension…" And with that she was gone.  
  
Spike couldn't believe his luck. Here he was with the Slayer, neither of them able to get out of this dimension where no harm could come to them, where she couldn't lie, where there was food and drink of the finest quality, a soft bed to sleep in, laundry done for you… and the Slayer couldn't beat him up. He thought she looked rather dejected at the idea, and smirked. 'Really going to enjoy this dimension…'  
  
Buffy was not so happy. 'Why Spike? Why not some good-looking… Angel? Unable to harm her, but… and not a vampire, so…' she shook her head. 'Not going to happen.' She sat gnawing on a chicken-bone sulkily. 'Okay, nice place, good food. But with SPIKE!!'  
  
His hand brushed her arm as he reached for the honey-pot. 'It felt warmer than usual. Still cool. But – not cold.' Then it hit her. 'He's not a vampire here, as Estrellita said. Doesn't drink blood. Doesn't kill. Doesn't want to kill me. Doesn't have such cold skin…' She wondered if that meant he had a soul. 'If he did…' she realised with horror, 'most of the things I hate about him are irrelevant here!' She didn't want them to be irrelevant. She wanted to hate him. 'Because anything else is too dangerous, too scary!' whispered a voice within. She pushed the thought away, denying it.  
  
"Plenty more chicken, love, you don't have to eat the bone," Spike's amused voice broke in on her thoughts.  
  
"Don't want to waste any," she snapped back, suddenly remembering another reason for hating him. 'Damned taunts and quips and sarky comments and looking at me as though he knows what's going on in my mind. And body!' she thought, snatching up another chicken leg.  
  
"Course not, wouldn't mummy be upset if her little slayer wasted that tasty gristle!" he taunted. "C'mon, Slayer, there's no more eat left on it, and hasn't been for quite some time… I think you were thinking naughty thoughts, like…"  
  
"You're a pig, Spike!" she said, getting up and walking out of the door. 'God, need to get away from him!'  
  
Spike helped himself to another slice of bread and honey. 'No point in hurrying after her. She can't get very far…' he grinned, licking his fingers. Then he sauntered out into the mid-morning sun.  
  
He decided to explore, knowing that sooner or later his path would cross hers – 'if only in the evening…' He liked the thought. Buffy drawn back to the house to sleep – in bed with him. He grinned wickedly. 'Life was good – especially in this hedonist's paradise!'  
  
Buffy wandered around disconsolately, discovering that, beautiful though the place was, she was feeling rather lonely. She sat on the beach, watching the sea roll in gently, tossing the occasional pebble into the waves. The insidious voice inside her head nagged that there was always Spike, but she didn't want to listen.  
  
Spike was enjoying the sunshine as he explored the woody glades round the house. A clear stream chuckled nearby, and he idly dipped his hand in it, feeling the cool, clean water running through his fingers as he gazed up at the blue sky. It was a long time since he'd been able to enjoy the sunlight like this…  
  
It was dusk when Buffy returned to the house, hungry, tired and dejected. Spike was already there eating. She frowned.  
  
"Decided not to wait for you," he smiled. "Didn't know when you'd be home…" The mock domesticity irritated her.  
  
"Fine." The food was different, though still delicious, varied and plentiful. She ate in silence, not wanting to admit she'd wanted company. Any company. Even his.  
  
"Found anything interesting?"  
  
"Beach."  
  
"Sandy or pebbly? Safe to swim?" 'God, this was going to be hard if she decided on monosyllabic answers!'  
  
"Sand. Safe." She didn't even look up.  
  
"Right. Well, I'm going to bed." She made no comment. He left her eating and went to bed, falling asleep immediately.  
  
Buffy dropped her head into her hands and cried.  
  
An hour later, she crept into the room. Spike was in bed, already asleep. And – naked. She gulped. 'Of course, Estrellita had said…' She stripped off and dived under the covers, turning her back on him. It was a long time before she slept. 


	3. Chapter 2

A dappled light danced over them as they lay in bed. Spike woke first, wondering why he felt so warm and comfortable… and how he'd managed to wake up with his arms round the Slayer. 'Shame she's got her back to me,' he thought, but didn't move.  
  
Buffy woke soon after, though, and went through an almost identical thought pattern. She, however, tried to slide out of his arms, thinking he was still asleep. 'What he doesn't know…' only to find that his arms tightened round her.  
  
"Oh, no you don't," he chuckled. "I like the feel of you there. Nice and warm. And anyway, you like it." She didn't respond, still trying to wriggle free. "Mm, you do like it, don't you?"  
  
She tried to deny it, but the words wouldn't come out. 'No lies…' she thought despairingly. All he was doing was holding her, and yet…  
  
"Tell me…" he teased. "Tell me if you like it…!" No reply. "Please, tell me…" he whispered pleadingly.  
  
"Okay! I like it," she snapped. 'Bugger, didn't mean to say that!'  
  
"Stop struggling, then, woman," he murmured. "No need to struggle if you like it…"  
  
She relaxed slowly, not quite sure why she'd admitted to it. But it was true – she did like the feel of it, his strong arms holding her, his chest against her back. She closed her eyes. 'Yes… like this…'  
  
She wasn't the only one who liked the feel of it. But Spike decided not to push his luck too far, too soon. 'Get her used to cuddling up, she'll soon want more,' he thought, grinning.  
  
Eventually, hunger got the better of them and they got up, finding fresh clothes in the chest again, and breakfast on the table.  
  
"So… you going to show me this beach?" he asked as he cut himself a slice of bread.  
  
"If you want," she replied, giving him a small smile.  
  
"Mm, I do want," he said. She blushed and tried not to show she'd even thought he might have meant something else.  
  
"Okay, then, right after breakfast," she promised.  
  
She decided she liked the beach better with company. 'Even Spike's company was better than that awful loneliness,' she thought as they sat watching the waves lap lazily on the sand. She yawned, stretched, and lay back, enjoying the companionable silence. 'Spike was okay to be around when he shut up,' she thought.  
  
She became aware of something tickling her neck. "Stop that!" she warned, opening her eyes to see Spike wielding the offending feather, "Or you'll regret it!"  
  
"Oh? Can't hurt me, Slayer!" he teased.  
  
"No… but I can tickle you back!" she grinned, pushing him down onto the sand and sitting astride him, tickling him till he begged for mercy. She sat back and smiled. "That'll teach you!"  
  
"Doubt it!" he quipped back, flipping her over and tickling her again, as she tried to wriggle from underneath him, squealing with laughter.  
  
"Stop it! Stop it!"  
  
"Mercy?"  
  
"Mercy! Please, stop it!" He let her go, and she lay there panting, trying to get her breath back, realising she'd actually quite enjoyed it, even though she usually hated being tickled.  
  
"Sorry, just too tempting. Fancy a swim?"  
  
'God, thought he was going to say something else then!' "Uh – no bikini…"  
  
"So? Who's looking?" he said, raising a scarred eyebrow.  
  
"You, probably," she threw back amiably.  
  
"Aw, Slayer's shy…" he teased. "Nothing to be ashamed of, love, you've got a neat little figure there. Anyway," he smiled disarmingly at her, "nothing I haven't seen before."  
  
"Nothing you… when was that, precisely?"  
  
"This morning when you were getting dressed. Took your time about it… lovely floor show, pet!" he grinned.  
  
"You're…"  
  
"A pig Spike?" he mimicked. "Oh, c'mon, love, what guy wouldn't have looked? Most would have jumped you by now, anyway," he added, trying to look virtuous and failing.  
  
She scowled. "It's not fair. You're taking advantage!"  
  
He chuckled. "And of course you haven't taken a single peep, have you, love?"  
  
She blushed and refused to answer, knowing that she couldn't deny it.  
  
"So…" he said lazily, "you coming for that swim or not?"  
  
"Uh – yeah. Turn your back while I…" she looked away, realising that he was already half-naked.  
  
"Sure you don't need any help?" he teased.  
  
"Sure. Thanks." She undressed, knowing full well he was watching her. Without turning to look at him she walked towards the shore.  
  
She was waist deep when she found her legs pulled from under her. "You bastard!" she spluttered when she resurfaced. "I'll get you for that!" and with that she began splashing him, finding she wasn't nearly as irritated as she could have been. 'It was – fun, in a strange kind of way,' she thought, as she tried to dodge his attempts to duck her. Diving down under water, she swam round him before jumping onto his back. Only to find herself being pulled under with him. She came up spluttering, finding herself in his arms. 'Not quite how the plan went…'  
  
"Well, now, here's a turn-up for the books," he grinned, noticing her discomfort, and holding her against him for longer than was necessary for her to get her breath back. Only when she was really blushing did he let her go, watching her swim back to shore with admiration – and not a small amount of lust. He decided not to follow immediately.  
  
She was already dry and dressed when he got back to shore, studiously ignoring him. So he lay down to dry off right in front of her, his naked body glistening with drops of water. 'Now try and ignore me!' he thought.  
  
She did try to ignore him, but found her eyes being drawn back to him time and again, desperately trying not to show it, much to Spike's amusement. He was very well aware of the effect he was having on her.  
  
"Enjoying the view, love?" he taunted her, watching her blush in confusion.  
  
"Uh… yeah. Um. Nice sand," she said inanely.  
  
"Weren't looking at the sand, though, were you, pet?"  
  
"Uh – no," she squeaked.  
  
He smirked. "Didn't think so." He stretched, blatantly flaunting his nakedness. "Looking at me, weren't you love?"  
  
"Uh – well, I – that is – not deliberately."  
  
"Liked what you saw?"  
  
She couldn't look him in the eyes, knowing that he already knew the answer, and was only asking because she couldn't lie. "Um," 'you could just not answer. But that would still be admitting it.' She could feel his eyes on her, daring her to answer as she watched the last few drops of water sliding down his muscular body. And almost wishing her fingers could take their place. "Um. Yeah." She flushed, refusing to look at him.  
  
He chuckled. "Thought so."  
  
"Uh – I think I'll head back," she stuttered. "Need a drink." She fled.  
  
He smiled to himself as he watched her go.  
  
She wondered how he could be so blatant. 'Just lying there in front of me – no shame – no flaws… except the scar on his eyebrow. Which actually was quite – attractive…' She shook herself. 'No more thoughts like that!'  
  
She drank the water thirstily. Her mouth had gone very dry. But she'd actually enjoyed the morning. Leisurely breakfast after lazing in bed, having fun on the beach… 'You know, he's actually very good-looking. Very attractive,' whispered the voice in her head. 'I kind of noticed!' she sniped back mentally, annoyed at admitting it even to herself. 'God, that body…' her fingertips itched.  
  
Spike was wise enough not to inquire into her thoughts as he sat down beside her. "Still got sand in your hair," he commented.  
  
"Mm. I'll wash it out after lunch." She knew he was watching her. "So, what did you do yesterday?"  
  
"Oh, explored a bit. Found a nice glade, stream running through – just sat and enjoyed the sunshine, really." He looked at her thoughtfully. "Show you later, if you like."  
  
She nodded. "Mm, sounds good."  
  
After cleaning the sand from her hair, she followed him to the glade, delighted by its beauty.  
  
"Come here," Spike called from the stream, "and I'll teach you how to tickle trout…"  
  
"Not nearly as much fun as tickling vampire!" she giggled as she followed his instructions.  
  
He raised an eyebrow. "Bard, please!"  
  
She giggled again. "So, how did a vampire – sorry, Bard – learn to tickle trout?"  
  
"Learnt when I was a boy. Had a friend I stayed with in the country sometimes. Rob. Real country boy at heart. Parents' groundsman had taught him… course, they didn't approve of it. So he did it all the more, and taught me…" He smiled quietly, sadly to himself. "Poor Rob…"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Thrown by his horse and killed," he said abruptly.  
  
Buffy wished she hadn't asked. The memories were obviously still painful, even after all this time. 'Must've been good friends,' she thought, wondering if anyone would grieve for her for that long. 'Angel, maybe…' she thought, a little voice inside her trying to suggest that Spike also would.  
  
The tension broke as, to her surprise, Buffy caught a trout, holding it in the water a little before letting it go.  
  
"Real natural you are, love," he said approvingly. "Took me much longer to learn!"  
  
She was amazed at the glow of pride his praise caused in her. Amazed at how much she'd enjoyed the day, enjoyed his company. 'When he wasn't being antagonistic in any way, he could be – well, nice, in a funny sort of way,' she thought, looking sidelong at him as he gazed up at the sky, humming quietly.  
  
He noticed her watching him. "What?"  
  
She shook her head. "What was that you were humming?"  
  
"Oh – nothing, really, just something I made up…" he said, looking embarrassed. "Has some words to go with it…" he added.  
  
"Can I hear it?" she suddenly seemed eager.  
  
"Uh – well, yeah, if you want…" he was flattered, though nervous, knowing what the usual reaction was to anything he wrote. 'Still, give it a go.'  
  
She smiled. "Well, don't bards serenade ladies? I mean, it's kinda part of the job description…"  
  
He smiled back at her in the dusk. "Sure…" He cleared his throat, and started singing in a soft, warm baritone:  
  
"Soft starlight becomes you well, my love,  
  
Under a summer sky; when high above  
  
Shines the fair, pale, bride-like moon,  
  
And the nightingales warble their tune;  
  
When around us, the scent, summer-sweet  
  
Of grass rises, crushed under our feet,  
  
Mingled with the salt of the sea  
  
As she sings her low song, tranquil, free;  
  
And in the cool and lulling breeze,  
  
Sleepy and gentle wave the trees."  
  
Silence fell for a while.  
  
"That – was beautiful…" she murmured. It had been.  
  
He blinked, surprised. "You – you liked it?"  
  
"Yeah…"  
  
"I…" he looked suddenly bashful. "I wrote it for you." He looked at the ground, expecting derision and rejection. 'Like Cecily all over again,' he thought, wondering why he'd let himself be talked into it. 'Because you wanted to,' taunted an inner voice.  
  
"F-for me?" She felt tears stinging her eyes, suddenly touched. "C- can I – have a copy some time?"  
  
He looked up at her, suddenly hopeful as the starlight glimmered on her unshed tears. "You – like it that much?" He couldn't believe it.  
  
She nodded, reaching out and touching his hand gently. "People don't tend to write poetry and songs for me…" she said. "Can't explain, really, but – you know, it's nice that someone thinks you're worth writing for."  
  
Suddenly he saw her as a girl, not the Slayer. Just a girl, with all the insecurities that came as part of that. And the loneliness of her calling. Not being able to have a normal life, have fun… tickle trout, and… and have nice, romantic guys writing soppy love-poetry for her. No normal, teenage things. 'Poor kid,' he thought, a pang of compassion sweeping through him. 'Yes – they were both isolated, in a way…' "I'll do you a copy tomorrow. There's paper… no, I'll give you the original."  
  
"Signed?"  
  
He wondered if she'd ever cease to amaze him. "Yeah. If you want."  
  
She nodded. "Mm." Something struck her. "I thought you said you were a bad poet?"  
  
"Well – I am usually. Don't know how it happened. It just – well, it just – kind of – happened…" he tailed off.  
  
"Well. I like it, anyway," she said decidedly, getting to her feet. She smiled, holding out her hand to him. "Supper?"  
  
"Mm," taking her hand to pull himself up.  
  
Supper was companionable, and Buffy found herself less uncomfortable when it came to bedtime. She nestled willingly into Spike's arms, welcoming the chaste kiss on her forehead.  
  
He didn't care to admit how much her reaction to the song had touched him. No one had really liked any of his poetry before – even Dru had laughed, sometimes. But Buffy – had liked it. 'Almost cried, she liked it so much.' He felt the lump in his throat, and scolded himself for being soft. It didn't help. 'You are soft, when it comes to the blonde in your arms…' whispered the voice. 'In my arms!' he smiled, gently touching the blonde hair scattered on the pillow, a few locks curling onto his shoulder and chest.  
  
She felt as though nothing could be more perfect than this moment, wanting it to last for as long as possible. But her eyes were determined to close. She slept, a smile lighting her face. 


	4. Chapter 3

She opened her eyes and blinked at Spike, lying beside her. 'Strange – we must have been here weeks, yet it's still strange to see the love in his eyes – stranger still to feel it returned…' She nestled closer to him, smiling.  
  
"Sleep well, love?"  
  
"Mm, as always." 'Dreaming of you. As always.'  
  
They lay as they always did, curled in each other's arms, dreaming gently. Every morning Buffy would wonder if anything would happen between them. And every morning she was disappointed.  
  
Something told her that this morning would be different. She saw the look in his eyes and caught her breath.  
  
She closed her eyes as his lips brushed hers gently. She kissed him back, wondering how she'd ever lived without him, as his tongue explored her mouth softly. He drew back, looking her in the eyes. She smiled. "Nice wake- up call."  
  
"Mm," he agreed.  
  
"Haven't woken up yet," she teased.  
  
"Oh… I'll have to try again, then, won't I?" he smiled, and kissed her again.  
  
"Have to try harder than that…!"  
  
"Oh, I will, will I?" he teased, rolling on top of her. "How's this, then?" This time, the kiss was long and deep, and his hands stroked over her body.  
  
She raised her hands to him, responding. He pulled away and looked down at her. "Don't stop," she whispered.  
  
"Sure you want this?" he whispered in reply. She nodded.  
  
"Yes. I'm sure. I do want this," she said earnestly.  
  
He kissed her again, winding his arms round her. "Really?"  
  
"Mm."  
  
His touches were soft and gentle, as if he was afraid he'd hurt her, tentative and tender. Every touch was perfectly placed for her pleasure as he explored her body, wanting to know every inch of her intimately. Her own response was equally tentative, but growing more eager, as she also explored him, feeling his muscles under her hands, the smoothness of his skin against her. Both of them felt as if this was somehow new, something they had to find out about together, even though they both knew it shouldn't feel that way.  
  
Each brush of his lips against hers made her feel as though she was drowning, and she wound her fingers in his hair to hold him closer. He started kissing her properly again, tongue exploring her mouth just as his hands were exploring her body. She wrapped her legs around him, wanting to feel him against her, to be as close to him as possible. Wanting to feel him inside her.  
  
She looked up at him, breathless and slightly dizzy. "Spike…?"  
  
He gazed down into her eyes. "What, love?"  
  
"I – I love you," she whispered, holding his gaze. "I…"  
  
He kissed her again, feeling her hand winding in his hair, her other hand straying over his body. "I love you, too," he murmured, kissing her neck as she arched into him, trying to maintain contact with him.  
  
"Love you – so much…" She held him closer, loving the feel of the hardness of his body, pressing down against her, pinning her to the bed. "So much…"  
  
"Sh…" He wrapped his arms closer around her, rocking his body gently against hers as he kissed her neck and shoulder. He could feel her body trembling against him as she tried to get as close to him as possible. She whimpered softly as he eased himself inside her. "There, baby… better?" he murmured as she quivered at the feel of him, every move sending darts of love and desire through her. She caught his lips with her own, opening her mouth to his gently insisting tongue.  
  
His movements were slow and gentle, but they only made her want him more. She hadn't realised just how much she'd wanted him – until now. She knew now.  
  
She moaned, hands roaming over him, delighting in the feel of him, his strength and power, and yet his gentleness and tenderness too. 'How can a man be this perfect?' she wondered hazily as he made love to her. She wrapped herself round him as much as she could, so that as much of her as possible was in contact with him as he thrust into her gently.  
  
She shuddered to a climax as he did, whispering his name in bliss as her world spun around her, aware only of the feel of him, his cheek against hers, the sound of his voice in her ear, telling her of his love for her, the soft caresses of his hands, the feel of his strong arms round her, holding her close. In that moment, she knew herself to be truly happy.  
  
She turned her head to kiss him, then lay quietly in his arms, gazing into his eyes. They lay contentedly for a while, before slipping back into sleep, still tangled in each other's arms. 


	5. Chapter 4

It was an evening like any other. Spike was sitting at the table, writing poetry. Buffy sprawled on the bed watching him, drinking in the sight of her handsome lover.  
  
He knew she was watching him, but didn't mind. He could tell she was just enjoying being there, as she usually did. Eventually, she'd come over to him and try to read over his shoulder.  
  
Sure enough, curiosity got the better of her, and she crept over to him, peering over his shoulder. He was at the 'fine-tuning' stage, as he called it, so put the pen down and drew her down onto his knee, wrapping his arm around her. She snuggled up to him, happy just to be close to her beloved Spike.  
  
"Love you," she murmured into his chest.  
  
"Love you, too," he replied, kissing the top of her head. "So much."  
  
"Mm," she smiled, nestling closer to him.  
  
They stayed there quietly, just enjoying each other's presence, the feeling of being close to each other, not needing to say anything. Their contentment and companionship was almost palpable. There was a song in Buffy's heart as she curled up, cat-like, on his lap. Spike wondered inanely if she'd start purring, she looked so happy. He wondered how his own heart hadn't burst with happiness. He kissed her softly, barely more than a gentle touch on her lips.  
  
"Supper?"  
  
"Mm," she replied. "Sounds like a good plan." She uncurled herself and stood up, and they went out to the table to eat.  
  
Estrellita was there waiting for them. They shared a sense of misgiving. She smiled, sadly. "Yes. It is almost time."  
  
"No!" cried Buffy. "I don't want to go home!" Spike was silent, his face set.  
  
Estrellita touched her hand gently. " Some day, you may return. Both of you. But you have responsibilities of your own, people who need you. The hell-god Glorificus is searching for the Key," she stated. "You need to stop her from finding it."  
  
Buffy nodded, biting her lip. "So, if I save the world, I get to come back?" she asked.  
  
Estrellita sighed. "I wish it was as simple as that. Because your task is so difficult and important, I must make you forget your time here. Otherwise, it will distract you from your purpose." She looked at their aghast faces. "You cannot return here until your work is done, and until you have found each other again. If you do not find true love with each other in your own dimension, you will not return here." Her eyes were sad as she said it. "I wish it were not so. Your love is so great. But this is beyond my control. The fate of the world is in your hands."  
  
Buffy was clinging to Spike, sobbing quietly as he tried to comfort her. "Why? Why me?"  
  
"Because you are the chosen one, and there is a part you have yet to play in your own world. But have no fear, I will help you when I may. Though in some things, I may not interfere."  
  
"When do we go?" asked Spike emotionlessly.  
  
"Tomorrow. Your clothes will be in the chest in the morning. Then I will send you back home." She seemed to want to say something more, but only managed a small "I'm sorry," before flitting out into the night.  
  
They didn't feel much like eating, knowing their time there was so short. Buffy cried herself to sleep in Spike's arms. His own side of the pillow was wet before she woke.  
  
They dressed silently in the morning. As Buffy put on her jacket, Spike handed her a wad of papers. "Here. My poetry. I wrote it for you. You may as well keep it."  
  
She gave him a small smile to thank him, and put the poems in her jacket pocket. "Ready?"  
  
"Guess so," he replied.  
  
She sighed, taking a last look round the room that she'd come to love so much. "Wait a minute!" she said, spotting the flower he'd picked for her from the glade. She picked up the little flower that seemed to glow like silver and pearl, beautiful and iridescent. "Here. Keep this safe for me!" she said, handing it to him.  
  
He smiled, kissing it gently, and slipped it into the tiny book of poetry he always carried with him. "Fair's fair." He took her hand and they went to meet Estrellita. She looked as though she'd been crying.  
  
She led them back to the place they'd first arrived, then turned to them. "You will forget this has happened to you. At least, for a while. After that, I cannot tell. But you will be drawn to each other. I hope your time will come to return here. And that you succeed in your mission…" She reached out and touched both of them on the forehead. "My thoughts will be with you," she murmured as they slid into sleep.  
  
  
  
Buffy became aware that she was lying on the ground in a cemetery, and that Spike was holding her hand. "You're holding my hand!" she squeaked in annoyance, pulling away from him.  
  
"God knows why!" he sniped back.  
  
"Well, no more demons tonight. I'm going home."  
  
"Good riddance," he muttered as he watched her retreating form.  
  
Arriving home, Buffy threw her jacket onto the back of her chair, then went to check on Dawn. No one noticed it slide quietly onto the floor, where it lay hidden.  
  
Entering the crypt, Spike threw his book of poetry into his "Buffy" box in disgust. 'She hates me. Poetry won't change that. Specially mine.'  
  
And they forgot.  
  
  
  
TBC… 


	6. Chapter 5

Ladybard (chapter 5), by Slayergirl  
  
Please note that from here on, there will be some fairly large time lapses between chapters… we're now at the end of season 5.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
"'I know you'll never love me. I know that I'm a monster. But you treat me like a man. And that's…'" The words echoed in her head as she hastily shoved some clothes into a bag. Those words, from the vampire who was waiting downstairs for her. Those words, and what he'd already done for her and Dawn, what he was still prepared to do… He would die for them – spend an eternity in hell for them. The thought shook her. She bit her lip, fastening the bag, and running downstairs.  
  
"Ready?" He seemed to have regained some of his composure as he turned to the door, weapons in hand.  
  
"Spike, wait." He turned back. She squared her shoulders, resolved. "I just wanted to thank you," she said softly. "For what you've done. For being willing to do whatever's necessary. And," she took a deep breath, "no one who does that is any kind of monster. So don't think of it like that." There was a small pause. "Anyway, we'd better get going – not much time," she said as he looked at her in amazement.  
  
"Yeah. Uh. Best go, then," he said, feeling slightly dazed. He found it hard to believe that she'd just said those things to him. He followed her silently.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Dead. She couldn't be dead. His beloved Buffy. But she couldn't be alive either, not after that fall. Even her Slayer strength couldn't have saved her. He dropped his head in his hands and wept, oblivious to the others round him. Oh, they'd saved the world. But what was it to him without her?  
  
A small hand was trying to clean the wound on his head as he clutched her broken body to him. He barely noticed, until he smelt blood that wasn't his own. He blinked up at his attendant.  
  
"Dawn." She was crying, too, not knowing what to do, instinct taking over as she tried to clean him up, her own blood still flowing freely from the shallow cuts, mingling with his own. He wrapped an arm round her, and, still not letting go of Buffy's body, sobbed into the blood-soaked dress of her younger sister.  
  
Her fingers wound into his hair in an attempt to comfort him, but her own anguish was too great. She kissed him on the forehead, tasting his blood, not knowing why she'd done it. He looked up at her. "Sorry," she quavered.  
  
He shook his head. "Might help heal those cuts – vampire healing. Won't hurt you. Take some more if you need to."  
  
She knelt beside him. "No. My blood was the same as Buffy's. I should heal quickly anyway." She noticed the strange look on his face as she said it, and understood. Uncaring of the others watching, she brought his mouth over one of her cuts. "Drink."  
  
He backed away. "No! No, not from you, never…"  
  
"Do it. Drink," she said. "Just take a little." She brought his mouth back to the cut, and he took a little, unwillingly.  
  
"Bound to each other forever, now, Nibblet," he tried to smile.  
  
There were tears in her eyes. "No. They made me out of her. It's as much her blood as mine. You're bound to her forever. You'll always carry a part of her in you." She sat, stroking her dead sister's hair. "I know how much you loved her. I'd hoped that one day she'd love you back. I'd have given my life for it." Tears were running down her cheeks.  
  
"And so you gave me all you could of her," he whispered. "Bound us to each other…" Dawn nodded. "Like it or not, you bound yourself to me as well."  
  
"I know. You're my brother. All I have now," she whispered.  
  
Eventually they remembered the others, who were staring curiously at them. Giles had come up behind them.  
  
"Xander. We need to get them out of here."  
  
"Spike will carry Buffy. And I can walk," said Dawn with no emotion in her voice.  
  
"But…" began Giles.  
  
"No." She got up, helping Spike to his feet. Neither looked back as they walked back to the shop. Willow and Tara gathered up the broken pieces of the bot.  
  
No one knew that Dawn spent that night in Spike's arms, both of them crying, grieving for Buffy, huddling together on the sofa at Revello Drive, unable to think of anyone or anything else. Each drew comfort from the other, bound to each other by blood, a bond as strong as that between Buffy and Dawn. They would be brother and sister till the end of the world.  
  
  
  
  
  
Author's note: No, this isn't turning into a Spike/Dawn fic, and yes, this chapter is important for the rest of the plot… just wait and see! 


	7. Chapter 6

Ladybard chapter 6, by Slayergirl.  
  
Set in a theoretical season 7 (my own canvas to work on!) – forgive the jump of an entire season, but the fic would have taken forever if I'd included it.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
It was several weeks since Tara had died. Willow was no better, despite the sedatives Giles had somehow managed to get hold of for her, and which Xander – who spent most of his time looking after her – lovingly administered daily. Buffy felt bereft, especially now Giles had gone to England to tie up some loose ends. They were taking a long time to tie up.  
  
She picked apathetically at her food. She didn't feel like eating. Or sleeping. Or patrolling. She missed Willow and Xander and Anya, the way they had been, grown up school-kids. She missed Tara. She missed Giles. She missed Spike. Oh, God, she missed Spike! Every damned bleached-blond she saw made her heart lurch – would it be him? Had he come back? And her dreams were full of him. Not full of the violent sex of their rather strange pseudo-relationship, but filled with tenderness and love. They were dreams she woke from in tears.  
  
She threw down her fork and went up to her room, suddenly wishing Dawn had stayed in after all. There, on her dressing table, was a little framed picture that Dawn had drawn of him, and given to her after he'd left. She spent more and more time looking at it each day. 'Have to do something!' she thought grimly. 'I can't just sit here doing nothing, holiday or no holiday. I HAVE to do something!'  
  
She set to work tidying her room. It didn't really need it, but it was something to do. But it didn't take long enough. 'Right. Cleaning it is, then.' Out came the duster and polish. Then the Hoover.  
  
'Wow! Forgot I had this!' she thought, as she moved the chair and saw her jacket on the floor. She picked it up, about to hang it up. Then she noticed there was something in one of the pockets.  
  
She opened up the wad of papers. 'Poetry – dedicated to me! In… oh my God!' She clutched the papers to her, sobbing. "Oh, God, Spike! Spike, where are you?" she cried aloud in desperation as the memories flooded through her. It was several hours later that Dawn found her there, clutching the poems and picture as she wept.  
  
  
  
  
  
Spike walked through the streets of London, somewhat sorely after the bust-up in the hospital. Sure, his chip was out. But he didn't really feel like killing any more. He just wanted to be with Buffy.  
  
He sprawled on a bench and reached into his pocket for the bag of blood that had caused him so much hassle at the hospital. But with it came his poetry book.  
  
'Of all bloody times!' he thought. He hadn't opened it for – well, several months. He split open the bag and drank the blood. Then he flicked open the book.  
  
A small, iridescent flower fell onto his lap. He picked it up, tears threatening to choke him as he sobbed. "Buffy!" he whispered, wondering if she'd remember.  
  
A few hours later, he found himself pouring his heart out to Giles, who was gazing at the flower in wonder.  
  
"What do I do, Giles?" he pleaded. "Will she have remembered? Should I go back? Should I…?"  
  
"I think – you should go back. Can't tell if she'll have remembered. But if she has, she'll be going crazy." He polished his glasses nervously. "Much as I hate to admit it, I think she needs you there."  
  
Spike nodded. "Right then. Better be off."  
  
"Call me if you need help. I'll fly out as soon as I can."  
  
Spike set off, back to Sunnydale. Back home. Back to Buffy.  
  
  
  
  
  
Buffy opened the front door, weary from patrolling, and heartsick from her life. She froze when she saw the blond vampire on the sofa.  
  
"Oh, God, no, I'm hallucinating!" she whispered hoarsely as she caught hold of the doorframe to stop herself from falling. "No, it can't be him, why would he come back after everything I've done to him?" She felt herself falling, but couldn't stop herself.  
  
He caught her. "This been going on long, Nibblet?"  
  
She shook her head. "No. Only since she found the poems you wrote."  
  
'The poems! She'd found the poems!' "Did she say anything?"  
  
"Not really. She withdrew into herself more, cried more, and started seeing you round every street corner."  
  
He looked at the limp form. "Best get her upstairs." He carried her to her room, lying her on the bed. He plumped up the pillows, only to find his poems underneath them. He smiled wryly. Then he noticed the drawing of him on her bedside table. He sat on the bed beside her and waited for her to come round.  
  
Dawn popped her head round the door. "Everything okay?"  
  
"Not come round yet. But otherwise okay." He motioned the picture. "You gave it to her?"  
  
She smiled. "So she wouldn't forget. She had it on the dressing table until she found the poems."  
  
"Oh!"  
  
"Got homework to do, I'll be downstairs if you need anything."  
  
Buffy blinked her eyes as Dawn went back down the stairs. "Dawn?" she croaked. Then she looked at Spike. "You're not real," she said plaintively. "You're just in my imagination. You won't be there when I wake up, you're never there when I wake up and I miss you so much!" Her voice was climbing higher and higher with anguish. "God, Spike, where are you? I'm sorry, I'm sorry, just please come back to me! Oh, where are you?" she sobbed.  
  
He wrapped his arms round her, sitting her against him. "Sh, love, it's okay, I'm here…"  
  
"But you'll be gone when I wake up," she cried as she clung to him. "Don't leave me! Oh, don't make me wake up, I don't want this to be a dream!" she sobbed into his shoulder.  
  
His own tears were coursing down his cheeks to see her in such a state, and he cuddled her close. "It's not a dream, love," he said softly. "It's not a dream. You're already awake, and I'm really here. And I'm not going to leave again."  
  
"No, it's a dream, I'll wake up and you'll be gone!" she insisted wildly.  
  
'Just as well I'm used to dealing with crazed women,' he thought wearily. 'Giles was right. She was going crazy without me.' "Okay, love. I'm gonna prove this isn't a dream. Now, I'm gonna tell you something. Okay? Promise you won't hit me?"  
  
She gulped. "I promise."  
  
"I've had the chip taken out." He saw the look on her face, and knew that it had snapped her out of it. Luckily for him, there was no stake at hand.  
  
"You've done what?" she squeaked.  
  
"Uh – chip out. Gone. Finito."  
  
"Okay, nightmare…"  
  
"Hey," he said softly, taking hold of her hands. "Let me show you something." He pulled a bag of blood from his pocket. "See? Pig's blood. Still not killing humans. But by choice, now. That's why I did it. To prove to you that I could be a vampire and still do good – without a soul, without a chip. Doing pretty well so far. Though," he grinned, "I did knock out a security guard at a hospital in London."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Caught me nicking a bag of blood. Human blood." He smiled. "Then I found this." He held out the little flower to her.  
  
She took it, smiling. "And you remembered? And came back?"  
  
He pulled her close, hugging her. "I will always come back to you, love," he murmured. "Always".  
  
  
  
  
  
TBC… 


	8. Chapter 7

Ladybard chapter 7, by Slayergirl  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Buffy lounged back against Spike's knees as he massaged her shoulders. The film was fairly awful, but she didn't really mind. It was nice just to be spending time with him. And it was very nice to feel so pampered and loved. He always made her feel like that these days.  
  
"Good?"  
  
"Mm…" she replied dreamily. "So good. Relaxing."  
  
He leant forward to wrap his arms round her shoulders, kissing the side of her face. She reached up to kiss him, warm lips brushing softly against his cool ones. "Good, I can go on ogling the heroine, then," he teased.  
  
She cuffed him playfully. "You'd better not, or I'll…" He morphed into game-face.  
  
"Wanna play, Slayer?" he drawled.  
  
She smiled back, reaching up to caress a shiny fang, knowing he wouldn't bite. "No." She looked up at him, breathlessly, as his eyes shimmered between gold and azure, wondering if she dared ask… "I want you to claim me," she said finally, watching him slip back to his human form.  
  
He took her face in his hands, looking deep into her eyes. She couldn't read his expression. He brushed his thumb over her lips, and she closed her eyes, yearning towards him. "Already claimed you, love. Or at least, bound you to me," he said eventually.  
  
"Wha… how?" she squeaked.  
  
"When you died. Through Dawn. She took some of my blood – kissing the cut on my head – which started off the whole thing. She made me drink from one of her cuts, acting as a proxy for you. She wanted it to be that way – to give me something of you that I could keep forever." He looked down at her. "Don't be angry, love – please!"  
  
"I'm – not angry," she said. "Well, not with you, I can understand why you wanted it. As far as you were concerned I was dead, it wouldn't affect me. But – Dawn shouldn't have done that. It wasn't just her blood that she was playing with."  
  
"She thought you were dead, too," he reminded her.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me before?"  
  
"You'd probably have staked me for it. And felt violated by it. Now you've asked for it, want it – it's different."  
  
"Well, that explains a lot," she said, frowning. "All the stuff – before you went. Why I could only find peace with you, why I needed you so much. Why being without you…" She bit her lip.  
  
"I'm sorry," he said, stroking her hair.  
  
She crawled up to sit beside him on the sofa. "So make it up to me," she challenged.  
  
"How?"  
  
"Claim me properly. Me, not through Dawn. Claim me."  
  
He wrapped his arms round her. "You sure?"  
  
She looked up at him, trustingly. "Yes."  
  
She watched, fascinated, as he morphed back, unafraid of the demon. Flicking her hair to one side, she bared her neck for him.  
  
She was surprised when he kissed the sensitive skin, gently licking and nibbling and sucking. She wrapped her arms round him, feeling warm and comfortable, closing her eyes and murmuring softly that she loved him.  
  
His fangs were scraping against her neck, but still he didn't bite. She nestled closer to him, love washing around her in waves. His shoulder brushed against her lips and she began kissing it, holding his half-opened shirt out of the way. Then she felt his fangs sinking into her neck and moaned aloud. She'd never felt anything quite so erotic, and stretched her neck to allow him easier access. As he began to suck, she bit down hard on his shoulder in imitation of him, barely realising she was drinking from him. But she couldn't stop.  
  
He sucked once more and felt her shudder with him, letting go of his shoulder to scream. She looked stunned, dazed, and gazed up at him, blinking rapidly. "What – what happened?" she whispered, shocked.  
  
He smiled, stroking her hair. "Seems like you weren't the only one being claimed," he said wryly.  
  
"You mean – I claimed you?" She found it difficult to accept.  
  
He lay back on the sofa, pulling her down against his chest so that her head rested against his unbitten shoulder. "Seems so," he murmured. "You're mine now," he said, gently stroking the mark on her neck. "But I'm yours, too. Always."  
  
"Um, I haven't… you haven't…"  
  
"Turned you?" he raised an eyebrow. "Hardly. I didn't take enough blood to put you in danger. You probably took more of my blood than I took of yours!"  
  
She wrinkled her nose. "Sorry. I don't know what happened. I couldn't stop."  
  
He gave her a lop-sided grin. "Just so long as you never get turned… you could be a severe health risk, Summers!" he chided.  
  
"What did happen?" she asked, snuggling up to him.  
  
"Not sure," he yawned. "If you were a vampire, I'd say it was blood- lust, but you're not, and I don't think humans get it! Ask Giles… Maybe subconsciously you didn't like the thought of being submissive to a claim?"  
  
"So – I'm not?"  
  
"Not what?"  
  
"Submissive? To the claim?"  
  
He yawned again. "Yes and no. Mutual claim. Makes us pretty much equal."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"But still bound together. Almost certainly binds us more closely, actually. Doesn't happen often – most vampires won't allow it - cos it means they can't dominate, I suppose. Never really was that interested in the hierarchy stuff, but… pretty sure that you can only do it if you're of equal status, otherwise the whole hierarchy could be upset… Anyway, it means we're equal and we're bound together."  
  
"Oh!" She was relieved.  
  
"Worried I'll run off with someone else?" he teased.  
  
She blushed. "Uh – well. Always a possibility."  
  
He wound his fingers in her hair, pulling her head back so he could look at her. "No," he said softly. "It's not a possibility."  
  
She bit her lip, knowing that there was no other possibility for her either. "But – what if – you get staked, or something? I don't want to lose you again…"  
  
"Less chance of that than any normal guy being run over by a bus," he said firmly. "Get it into perspective, love! There are always going to be accidents. Your mom dying, Tara dying… see what I'm saying? It happens. And not just to you."  
  
She nodded. "But," she faltered, "One day I'll be old, or ill, or ugly, and you won't want… you'll still be…"  
  
"By your side," he interjected softly. "Yes, I'll always be young. But I'll be with you, right to the end. No matter what."  
  
"Even if I don't know who you are?"  
  
"Always, love, always," he soothed. "Not gonna leave you, love, ever…"  
  
She nestled back down against him, contented. "Good."  
  
He laughed and kissed her. That's my girl!"  
  
She linked her arms round his neck and kissed him back, tasting her blood in his mouth. She looked at him, breathlessly. "I love you, Spike," she whispered. "I feel so lost without you. I was so afraid you'd never come back, I needed you so much…"  
  
"Sh, love, I'm here now," he murmured.  
  
"Help me!" Her eyes were pleading, though she didn't know what she was asking for.  
  
"Always," he said gently, understanding, arms enveloping her as he rolled them over and kissed her. "Better?"  
  
She was completely surrounded, surrounded by love and comfort. His very presence was comforting. All her fears and insecurities seemed to drift away. She looked up at him, smiled, and nodded. "Better," she murmured as he kissed her again.  
  
  
  
TBC… 


	9. Chapter 8

Ladybard chapter 8, by Slayergirl  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
There was a message on the answerphone when they got in from patrolling. Buffy listened in horror to Xander's voice. "…So I had to halve the dose, they didn't have any more in stock, and now she's gone missing…"  
  
She called him back. "Xander. Spike and I are going looking for her. Stay put in case she turns up. Page me if she shows."  
  
She turned to Spike. His face was grim as he handed her a couple of stakes. "Just in case. So, we split up?"  
  
She nodded, and they set off in opposite directions.  
  
'Damn, should have told Spike to take her to Revello Drive,' she thought.  
  
'Way ahead of you, love,' a grim voice echoed in her head.  
  
'How – you're reading my thoughts? From the other side of town?' she thought incredulously.  
  
She felt him grin. 'The claim, love, remember? Mutual claim.'  
  
'Does it always happen that way?'  
  
'No. If I'd claimed you, I could control you, influence your thoughts, and read your mind. Mutual claim means we get telepathy, if we choose to use it, but neither gets the upper hand. I can't control you, you can't control me. Influence each other a bit, perhaps, but no control.'  
  
'Sounds like a pretty good deal!'  
  
'Mm. Any sign?'  
  
'No. Spike, if you find her first – she may use magick…'  
  
'I know.'  
  
'Be careful. Look, she may need some controlling, and vampire strength won't help you against magick, so…'  
  
'Don't ask me to do that!' he pleaded mentally. 'She'll feel as though she's been – well, it's like a violation of her mind, her will, her privacy…'  
  
'It may be her only chance!' she insisted.  
  
'Love, it won't stop her for ever,' he thought gently.  
  
'It – might buy us some time. Please, Spike!'  
  
She felt his internal turmoil, knowing how fond he was of Willow, knowing that he didn't want to hurt her, but was afraid that by not enthralling her he'd hurt her more. 'I'll do it,' he thought. 'She deserves a chance. But I'll warn her first.'  
  
'Thank you!' She felt him smile, a little sadly.  
  
'Don't mention it. Where are you now?'  
  
'Near the mall.'  
  
'Any sign?'  
  
'No. You?'  
  
'Your favourite cemetery.'  
  
Where they'd buried the Master. 'Actually, my least favourite.'  
  
'Precisely,' he grinned. 'Wait! Think I've found her!'  
  
Buffy stood silently, feeling Spike withdraw from her mind, trying not to think and distract him.  
  
Spike stood in front of the witch. "Willow?" She looked up at him. "Bit late, isn't it?"  
  
"What's it to you?"  
  
He sat down beside her. "I care, Willow. I don't want to see you get hurt."  
  
"Too late."  
  
"Willow, look at me," he said gently. She looked into his eyes and found she couldn't look away. She felt suddenly paralysed. "Now, I'm not going to hurt you. Just relax. This is to help you, Will."  
  
"What…?"  
  
"Thrall. I'm going to enthral you."  
  
He felt her struggle against it, but his will was stronger than hers.  
  
She blinked. "Spike?"  
  
He put an arm round her. "Sh, it's okay. Everything's okay. No magick, right? Not at the moment. And only ever for good, for fighting evil. For helping Buffy. But only when she asks. See? Not asking you to give it up completely. Just take a rest from it for a bit," he murmured soothingly, hoping she wouldn't realise that stopping her magick was exactly what he intended to do.  
  
She smiled and nodded. He got up and held his hand out to her. She took his hand. "Where are we going?"  
  
"Home. Taking you to Buffy's. Get you a nice, hot drink, tuck you up in bed. Shouldn't wander about in such skimpy clothes, you'll catch cold. And attract vamps. Here," he said as he wrapped his duster around the shivering girl. He searched out to find Buffy. 'Got her. Got her in thrall. Taking her to Revello Drive.'  
  
'Great. Call Xander if I'm not back before you.'  
  
Willow was sitting drinking hot chocolate when she arrived home, and Xander was fretting round her like a mother hen. Spike stood quietly at the window, looking out for her.  
  
"Everything okay?" she asked anxiously.  
  
Xander nodded, going over to her. "She's fine. A little – dazed. I guess that's part sedative, part thrall."  
  
"Xander, don't blame Spike," she implored. "He didn't want to do it. He only did it because I asked him to."  
  
To her surprise, he smiled. "It's okay. I know it's probably our best shot at helping her."  
  
Spike came over to them, as Willow sipped obliviously at her chocolate.  
  
"Spike – said it wouldn't stop her for ever."  
  
Xander looked at the vampire. 'He looks tired,' he thought suddenly. 'Wonder if enthralling does that to you?' "So, how long have we got?"  
  
Spike shrugged. "Depends how strong-willed she is. When I was in her mind, enthralling her, I felt the magick. It's – it's like a demon, in a way, it's trying to take her over. The more she uses it and the more powerful she gets, the stronger the magick gets. But it's like a compulsion, an addiction as well – it wants her to use it, so that she has to use it, then she'll belong to the magick completely – and it'll destroy her. There'll come a time when the power of the magick will be greater than my enthralment."  
  
"Then what?" chorused Buffy and Xander.  
  
He looked down. "Then we lose her to it. This isn't a long-term solution, it's just buying us some time. The thrall is like her chip – how long before the chip stops working? I can't tell."  
  
"Us?" asked Xander, his hopes rising slightly.  
  
Spike smiled. "Us. I've got her in thrall, remember. For the moment, I'm responsible for her actions. But we need to find a proper solution, fast."  
  
'What happens if we don't?' thought Buffy.  
  
'We lose her, like I said.'  
  
'I know, but – what about you? What happens to you?'  
  
He gave a mental shrug. 'Not much. Bit of a headache, maybe.'  
  
'Chip-type headache or normal-type headache?'  
  
'Depends how long she's in thrall.'  
  
'Oh.' She reached out and touched his hand.  
  
Willow was sitting meekly on the sofa. She yawned, eyelids drooping. Eventually she blinked up at them. "Can I go to bed now?" she asked Spike.  
  
Buffy and Xander both saw the look of pain that marred his features for an instant. "Sure, sweetie, go on up," he said gently, as though she was still a child. She smiled at them, and made her way upstairs.  
  
Buffy and Xander turned back to see Spike with his head in his hands on the sofa.  
  
"Hey, Bleach-boy," said Xander, sitting beside him. "Chill, will ya? You know there's no other way."  
  
"I know. I just wish there was," he groaned. "I feel as though I've betrayed her, and you, and Buffy, and Giles, and Tara, and…"  
  
"Okay, you're not meant to have a conscience! What you did was right."  
  
Spike looked at him. "Don't think I'll ever understand you, Harris. I've got your best friend in thrall and you tell me I've done the right thing!"  
  
Buffy knelt beside him. "You're doing it to help her," she reminded him. "There's no other way. You know that."  
  
He grimaced. "I know. Still feel bad about it though."  
  
Xander thumped him on the back, wondering what had happened to the 'Big Bad'. "Lighten up, man, you're sounding like Angel. Have a beer?"  
  
Spike couldn't help smiling at the unlikely offer. "Not now," he said. "More to the point, we need to figure out what to do about Willow."  
  
"More sedatives. They'll be in on Monday," said Xander.  
  
"Not a long-term solution," replied the vampire.  
  
"Addiction clinic? Hypnosis? Counselling?"  
  
"Better ideas, Xander. And we get her to go how?" asked Buffy.  
  
"Well, Spike has her in thrall. He can make her go."  
  
Spike rolled his eyes. "You don't get it, do you? It's not just an addiction, it's like some sort of demonic infection, like…" he turned to Buffy, "that time Angel told me about, you got telepathic after touching a demon? It's like that. She's been infected with magick, and she can't shut it off of her own will any more, just as you couldn't shut out the sounds. The thrall will only help for a certain amount of time – like the pillow or your hands held out the sound for a bit. But eventually, the demon will win out over the thrall. It's not just an ordinary addiction, it's an infection," he stressed. "And the only way to save her is to stop her using magick. Completely, if possible."  
  
They looked crestfallen. "So what do we do?" asked Xander.  
  
"I wish I knew," the vampire replied wearily. Then, speaking his own and Buffy's thoughts, "I wish Giles was here." 


	10. Chapter 9

Ladybard chapter 9, by Slayergirl  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
The phone rang, waking Spike immediately, Buffy waking a few seconds later, feeling slightly disorientated. 'My bed. My phone… answer phone…' she instructed herself. She grabbed it. "Yes? Hello? Buffy Summers speaking," she said groggily, glancing at the clock. 'Early morning – who the hell…?'  
  
"Buffy, hello, it's Giles. Sorry if I woke you up."  
  
"Yeah, you did. So, what's up? Found a way of stopping Willow yet?"  
  
He sighed. "No, not yet. Hypnosis under thrall will buy more time, if Spike's willing to do that. But just stopping her from using it is the only way I can see at the moment. Don't worry, I'm still working on it. I'm trying to get more information from the Council, as you asked. And about the mutual claim," he added. "Since you're interested. But you know how long that could take."  
  
"So, is this a progress report, or was there something else?"  
  
"Well, actually, I have some news for you and Spike. Is he there?"  
  
"Uh – yeah."  
  
"Put the phone on speaker." He sounded excited.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"While I was researching to find a way to help Willow, I came across a prophecy, in a very old, obscure book. I think it may talk about you – both of you."  
  
They exchanged glances. "Good or bad?" asked Spike carefully.  
  
"Oh, good. Well, not bad. At least, it depends on your point of view."  
  
"Giles, stop talking in riddles, you're sounding like Angel," warned Buffy.  
  
"Oh, yes, right. Well, if you translate the Sanskrit, it says that a slayer will give birth to a vampire's child. The child is referred to as lady-bard. Ladybard. And she will bring great good on the earth. She will have great power, and from her and – it says here – the souled vampire's child, will spring a great line of warriors who will protect the earth. Well, that's the gist of it, anyway… Buffy? Spike? Are you still there?"  
  
"Uh…" Buffy squeaked.  
  
"Uh…" muttered Spike at the same time.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Uh – always wanted kids," said Spike weakly.  
  
'Oh God… I thought my period was a bit late…' thought Buffy.  
  
'You never told me!'  
  
'You didn't notice?'  
  
'Notice what? I don't count the days in between them! Yeah, I know when you're in the middle of one, obviously – vampire senses – it always registers. You know, Buffy having period, must buy chocolate. But I don't know exactly when they start, or anything! You could have told me!'  
  
'Well – it didn't seem important at the time. I mean, I just thought it was stress or something. Y'know. I kinda assumed you couldn't get me pregnant!' she thought irritably.  
  
'Sure it wasn't someone else?' his eyes twinkled.  
  
She just looked at him. 'Claimed, remember? You'd know. You know it's yours…'  
  
He wrapped his arms round her, and finally spoke. "I know. Don't worry. I'll take care of you. Both of you," he whispered.  
  
"Spike? Buffy? Hello?"  
  
They turned to the phone. "Giles? I think I'm already pregnant."  
  
"Ah – oh!"  
  
"Um. What do I do?"  
  
"Um. Find out for sure. Um. Hospital? Doctor's?" He sounded panicky. "I'm coming back over… I'll fly out as soon as possible, though it might be a while."  
  
"Right. Good. Um, bye then."  
  
"Goodbye, Buffy, Spike. Take care, won't you?"  
  
"Sure thing."  
  
"Bye, Watcher."  
  
They waited until Giles put down the phone. Buffy burst into tears. "I'm not ready for this!"  
  
"And you think I am? Kind of a surprise to me, too!"  
  
"What do we do?"  
  
"You," he said firmly, "do what Giles says. And I'll look after you, patrol… whatever needs to be done."  
  
"But – but work, and…"  
  
"Sh, love," he said, kissing her neck. "It's my fault you're in this mess. I'll take care of you."  
  
"But…"  
  
"I've got money. Not vast amounts, but enough to tide us over. Giles'll probably help when he arrives, looking after things… Dawn will help too, when she can. She'll be a great little auntie," he said soothingly.  
  
"I just…" her hands fluttered helplessly as she tried to explain. "I don't feel ready."  
  
"Not happening yet, though, is it? You've got time to get used to the idea before the sproglet's born. We both have. We'll work it out together."  
  
She looked at him tremulously. "I – I'm scared."  
  
He cuddled her close. "Me too," he admitted. "I don't know what to do and it's totally unexpected. But I'm not going to run away from it," he reassured her. "I'll be here for you." He placed his hand reverently on her stomach. "For her."  
  
She wrapped her arms around him, and sat silently with him for a while. Finally, she asked, "what shall we call her?"  
  
"Any ideas?"  
  
"Well – I don't know. Never really thought I'd live long enough to have children, so I never thought about it." She paused. "What was your mother called?"  
  
"Stella."  
  
"Stella Joy? Your mom's name, and – well, Joy's close to Joyce. Like, bringing joy to the world… and to us."  
  
He smiled at her. "Sounds good. Pretty name."  
  
"Wonder if she'll look like you or like me?"  
  
"Hope she looks like you!"  
  
"But with your eyes… beautiful, blue, soul-searching eyes…" she murmured as she caressed the side of his face. "Um. How are we going to tell Angel that his ex-girlfriend is carrying his childe's daughter, who's destined to marry his son… who's already dead?"  
  
Spike bit his lip. That was a tough one. Put like that, it also sounded like something out of a bad slapstick comedy. Which was not at all how he felt about it. "Want me to break it to him? Or want to do it yourself?"  
  
She looked apprehensive. "How about both together?"  
  
He nodded. "Later, love," he whispered, "When you know for sure. You need to sleep, now. Get your strength up."  
  
She nestled into his arms, using his chest as a pillow, smiling as she realised he was purring softly. "Love you," she murmured.  
  
"Love you, too," he whispered. But she was already asleep.  
  
TBC… 


	11. Capter 10

Ladybard chapter 10, by Slayergirl  
  
Some months after the previous chapter…!  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
"Angel?"  
  
"Buffy!" said the familiar voice on the other end of the line. "How are you?"  
  
"Uh – okay. Well, that is, sort of okay. I mean, I'm okay, but…"  
  
"Out with it. What's up?"  
  
"I'm pregnant," she blurted out.  
  
There was a small pause. "Well! Congratulations!" There was another small pause. "At least, I assume it's congratulations?" he queried.  
  
"Uh – you're okay with that so far?"  
  
"Well – yes. Look, Buffy, you know I'll always love you. But – things change. People move on. That's what I wanted for you – a proper life. Something I couldn't give you… so, who's the father? I thought you were still with Spike?"  
  
"Uh – well, there's the thing, I…"  
  
"She is still with me," he said over her shoulder at the phone.  
  
"Oh! Spike – uh – Buffy, pass me over, would you?"  
  
She handed Spike the receiver. "Uh – Angel…"  
  
"Well, lad, what's the deal?"  
  
"The child's mine," he said, totally failing to keep the pride out of his voice.  
  
There was a long, shocked silence. Then, to their surprise, Angel burst into laughter. In their minds they could both see Angel wiping tears of laughter off his face. "Well, Spike, welcome to the club!" he managed to gasp out finally. "Never thought I'd see you a father! That's the funniest thing I've heard all week!"  
  
Spike growled down the phone at his sire. "It's not funny! This is serious! And unplanned…"  
  
Angel calmed down a little. "Sorry, sorry… look, I'm due some time off… I'm guessing you'll need some extra help around. If you want I can come and help?"  
  
"Uh…" He looked at Buffy, who nodded. "Sure. That'd be great."  
  
"Okay if I bring Connor?" This time Buffy and Spike were silent, stunned.  
  
"But – I thought – he was…" began Buffy.  
  
"So did I," said Angel lightly. "But strange things do happen. Prophecies included."  
  
"Uh – yeah, sure, bring him along…"  
  
They hung up. "Okay, can this get stranger?" she asked Spike.  
  
He shook his head dazedly. "No, love, I don't think it can!"  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Angel arrived a fortnight later, highly amused at their predicament, but helping willingly. He seemed to enjoy being the expectant uncle figure, bringing some baby clothes and flowers from him, presents for the baby from Cordelia, and best wishes from Wesley. 'He seems happier than I've ever seen him,' thought Buffy. 'Being a father suits him.' Strangely – or perhaps not so strangely – she felt no jealousy that he wasn't the father of her own child.  
  
He and Spike took it in turns to patrol, though there was little demon activity.  
  
One evening, when Spike was patrolling, Buffy sat with Angel. She felt a little awkward about asking, but… "Are you really okay about me and Spike?"  
  
He looked at her, smiling quietly. Then he answered her. "Yes, because I can see he loves you. No, he adores you, worships you. You're everything to him. He'd never do anything to hurt you. And…" he paused, as if unwilling to say the next part, "he's a better man than me."  
  
"How do you mean?"  
  
"I am what I am because of the soul. You know what I am without it. Spike… has no soul. Apart from you – you're his shining light, his conscience, his hopes, his dreams. He loves you and respects you, and won't do anything to hurt or upset you if he can avoid it – even without the chip. He hasn't killed since he had it taken out. He told me so."  
  
"Really? All of that?"  
  
He smiled. "All of it. That's why he's better than me. I need a soul to be noble and good and tender and loving and caring. He doesn't. He is by nature – now!" He laughed. "Buffy the vampire tamer, they should call you!"  
  
She laughed with him, knowing he was right. She had tamed Spike in a way… although the chip had done most of the work. 'Although…' She remembered Halloween when he'd tried to kill her, drain her… 'He was gentle, even then – no quick, sudden, violent movements, no actual pain, apart from her fear… just gently laying her down and bending over her, pulling her head back slowly, gently. And the first time he'd tried to kill her, he'd said it wouldn't hurt…'  
  
"Must be soon now," he said, breaking in on her thoughts.  
  
"Any time now," she said proudly.  
  
"Nervous?"  
  
She chewed at her bottom lip. "Try terrified?" She laughed self- consciously. "God. I've died, faced the Master, the Judge, Glory, countless other demons… and I'm still afraid of – of giving birth, of having a child… it's ludicrous, isn't it?"  
  
"No," said a gentle, familiar voice behind her. "No, don't get up. Sorry it took me so long to get here."  
  
"Giles!" she cried, reaching up her arms to him for a hug. "It's so good to see you! How was your flight? Would you like some tea? I can…"  
  
"Sit down, Buffy!" he laughed. "You should be taking it easy!" Angel was already on his way to the kitchen to make Giles some tea. "So, how are you feeling?"  
  
"Okay. Nervous. Everybody's been great, though."  
  
"Talking of everybody, where's Spike?"  
  
"Patrolling. He and Angel take it in turns. He'll be home soon."  
  
"Living here, then?"  
  
"Well – yeah. We use the basement. No sunlight, you see. He likes to be close at hand, just in case something happens. And I feel safer knowing he's there, too."  
  
Giles nodded, having come to accept their relationship. "Taking it very seriously, isn't he?"  
  
"Very… Speak of the devil!" as the door opened.  
  
"Demon, love, don't exaggerate!" he grinned. "Hello, Watcher, long time no see!"  
  
"Yes, well – wringing information out of the council is like bleeding the proverbial stone. I came as soon as I could."  
  
"Well, you made it in time, anyway."  
  
"Yes. Everything okay with it?"  
  
"Her, Giles," laughed Buffy. "Yes. No problems. She has a heartbeat. Therefore, human, not vampire. I'm guessing that's what you mean?"  
  
"Er – well, yes, I – um…" he said as he polished his glasses.  
  
"Relax, man, she's human," laughed Spike as Angel brought in the tea. "As human as Buffy is."  
  
Giles relaxed a little. Then he asked, "How's Willow?"  
  
"Delightfully obedient!" grinned Spike. "Seriously, though. She's upstairs. Dawn's sitting with her. No magic since you called – must be about eight months, I guess. Pretty good going."  
  
Giles nodded. "Still no other information. We just have to hope."  
  
"Hope what? That I can keep her in check?"  
  
"That, and that she stays off magick. And that she never comes across Arkalima demons."  
  
"Uh – what demons?" asked Buffy.  
  
"Arkalima demons. They feed on magick. Otherwise harmless, if unintelligent."  
  
"So – they'd kill her?"  
  
"No. She'd be triggered into doing some magick by their presence, and they'd consume it. But the consequences of her using it…"  
  
He left it unspoken, but they understood.  
  
Their minds were soon diverted, however, as Stella Joy decided that it was an auspicious time to start making her way into the world.  
  
  
  
TBC… 


	12. Chapter 11

Ladybard Chapter 11, by Slayergirl.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
"Well, Stella Joy Summers has finally gone to sleep," announced a weary Spike coming up from the basement. He poured a mug of blood for himself and heated it in the microwave while making Buffy a cup of tea.  
  
"What did you do, hypnotise her?" she teased. "She's just like Dawn was as a baby." She frowned. "Except that Dawn wasn't a baby and that's a created memory."  
  
"I heard that!" said her sister, giggling round the doorframe. She'd long since ceased to let her existence, or non-existence, bother her.  
  
"You always were hyperactive!" said Buffy, pursing her lips in mock- disapproval. "Always getting yourself into trouble!"  
  
Dawn grinned in reply. "Well, bad auntie Dawn's going out."  
  
"Stake?"  
  
She waved a pointed stick at her sister as a form of farewell, and slammed the door behind her.  
  
Spike smiled. "Maybe we'll get some peace and quiet for a bit."  
  
"Until Xander brings Willow back, yes. Well, enjoy it while we can."  
  
They snuggled quietly on the sofa for a while, until Spike cleared his throat. "Um, got something for you."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
He pulled a little packet out of his pocket, and took out a small, delicate ring. "Diamond and platinum. Don't like gold," he said, a little abashed.  
  
"Why…?"  
  
He gave her a sly grin. "Make an honest woman of you!" he teased.  
  
"You're suggesting – that we – uh…?"  
  
"Well, if you want to. But the claim binds us more than a piece of paper ever could. That's – if you like – just a physical reminder of it."  
  
"The telepathy and the mark on my neck aren't enough of a physical reminder?" she laughed. "Not to mention Stella?"  
  
"Mm… and the way you feel about me," he murmured, nuzzling her neck.  
  
"That goes without saying," she murmured in reply as she turned round to kiss him. She felt him slip the ring onto her finger, and smiled up at him.  
  
"You know, you're incredibly beautiful," he said tenderly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.  
  
She blushed. "So are you. In a masculine way, of course."  
  
He smiled and bent down to kiss her.  
  
'Need to breathe!' she thought laughingly.  
  
He sat back, giving her a crooked smile. "Sorry, love. Got a bit carried away there."  
  
She nestled down into his arms. "I like evenings like this. Stella sleeping, just the two of us curled up on the sofa… it feels as though nothing could possibly go wrong."  
  
He shook his head, smiling. "Shouldn't say things like that, love. You know what happens." Right on cue, Stella began to wail. Buffy rolled her eyes. "Your turn!" he laughed as she dragged herself away from him with a sigh.  
  
"Children! Who'd have them?" she muttered as she traipsed down to the basement and her wide-awake and screaming child.  
  
TBC… 


	13. Chapter 12

Ladybard Chapter 12, by Slayergirl  
  
WARNING!! You may require tissues for this chapter.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Buffy awoke to find Spike pacing the room, holding Stella along one arm, the telephone in his other hand. "Who is it?" she asked blearily.  
  
"Giles. We've got a problem."  
  
"Uh. Okay, gimme." She held her hand out for the phone. "What now? Another apocalypse?"  
  
"Very possibly. There's been a lot of demon activity lately…"  
  
"I know. I killed some of it."  
  
"And I'm not sure why. And that's always a bad sign."  
  
"No kidding."  
  
"Buffy, this is serious!"  
  
"Yes, Giles, it's also three in the morning, and you've woken up me, Spike, and my daughter, to tell me something I already know!"  
  
"And the Arkalima demons?"  
  
"Uh… what?" She suddenly went icy-cold.  
  
"I've heard reports of Arkalima demons in LA – Wesley phoned. He seems to think they might come this way."  
  
"Oh. God. How do we kill them?"  
  
"Well, starving them weakens them. But I've never heard of any actually dying or being killed before."  
  
"So what do we do?"  
  
"Keep Willow away from them, stop her from doing spells, and kill their travelling companions."  
  
"Travelling companions?" she whispered, sensing this wasn't going to be good news.  
  
"A few Fyarl demons, a couple of your telepathic friends, some trolls and a vengeance demon…"  
  
"Vengeance demon called…?"  
  
"Not Anyanka, unfortunately, or we might avoid this. Anyway, there are some others that neither Wesley nor I recognised from the descriptions."  
  
"So why are they coming here?"  
  
"Drawn to the Hellmouth, most probably," he said. "Though why now, I don't know."  
  
"When do they hit town?"  
  
Sunset tomorrow, if my calculations are correct."  
  
"They'd better be!" she gritted out.  
  
"Er – yes, well, I think that's all."  
  
"Great. See you later, Giles."  
  
She groaned as she hung up the phone.  
  
*** ***  
  
They waited. Angel, Xander, Giles, Buffy and Spike. Waited for the battle to commence.  
  
'Hope Dawn'll be okay looking after Stella and Willow,' thought Buffy anxiously.  
  
'She'll be fine, love. Just concentrate on the fighting. You won't be on best form, otherwise.'  
  
The demons seemed edgy. To Buffy's horror, they'd made their way to Revello Drive, not anywhere more – well, demony. Only Buffy and her friends stood between them and the house.  
  
"They may be after Stella," said Giles softly.  
  
"The thought had occurred to me!" she snapped. "But equally, they might be after Willow."  
  
"Also possible," he admitted.  
  
At that point, a Fyarl demon moved forward menacingly. He was swiftly despatched by Angel. The demons fell back a bit, although there were still three times as many of them as the silent guardians of the house.  
  
Then everything happened quickly. All but the Arkalima demons attacked at once. The two vampires fought side by side, a duo that struck fear into the hearts and minds of all their opponents. Giles and Xander flanked them, armed with silver daggers, which ripped and slashed mercilessly, eventually stabbing to the heart. Buffy fought at the front, until only the Arkalima demons remained. Spike pulled her back as the demons advanced. He looked worried and drained.  
  
"I can't hold her back much longer!" he gasped out. "She's started to fight me. I can't fight them both!"  
  
"Then fight her. Don't let go of her!"  
  
The soft sound of the door opening made them turn swiftly. The colour drained from Buffy's face.  
  
"No! Willow, back!" shouted Spike.  
  
They could see her, swaying, torn between the thrall and the magick. "Got – to stop – the demons!" she said.  
  
"Don't use magick, Will, they eat magick, it'll make them stronger," urged Spike.  
  
"Must – stop them! They want Stella. Mustn't let them hurt Stella. Stella and Dawn. Got to stop them!" She looked at Buffy helplessly. "The prophecy, Buffy! They mustn't be allowed to hurt Stella!"  
  
Buffy shook with fear, looking at Spike. His eyes were closed, concentrating for all he was worth on keeping her from using any magick. "We'll stop them," she whispered. "Don't worry, Willow. We won't let them hurt Stella."  
  
"You need magick, let me help!"  
  
"NO!" screamed Buffy. "Go back to the house!"  
  
Next to her, Spike collapsed, gripping his head. "No! Will, no… don't do it!" he whimpered. "Lost her, Buffy, I've lost her…"  
  
Magick was already crackling round her, gathering and swirling so fast that the violet eyes of the Arkalima demons were spinning. She flung an invisible ball of magic at them. As it hit them, they screamed and exploded into gushes of steam.  
  
"Fill your bellies with that!" she cried triumphantly. Then she doubled over in agony and fell to the ground. The others turned towards her.  
  
"No! No, Willow, no!" Buffy ran to her.  
  
She looked up, tears in her eyes. "Tell Spike – he was right. But I knew what I was doing. They were after Stella – little miracle. The prophecy – too important. Had to stop them…" She stopped and swallowed in pain. "Is he all right? Spike?" Buffy nodded. "Thank him. For trying. Good friend. It's time, Buffy. Time to go. This was what I was meant for. I felt it. I can go now. Be at peace…" She closed her eyes. "Say goodbye to the others. Dawn. Xander."  
  
"They're here, Will," she whispered. "Hold on, we've got you…" She cradled the red-haired head in her arms. "Hold on!"  
  
She gave an almost imperceptible shake of the head. "Time, Buffy." Her pulse had slowed, almost stopped. Buffy's tears dropped onto her face. "Love you, Buffy!" Then the pulse stopped.  
  
"NO!" screamed Buffy, sobbing. "No, Willow, come back, come back! She can't be dead, not Willow, not my Willow!" She rocked the dead body of her best friend in her arms. "Willow…!" She laid her body on the ground, frantically trying to do CPR.  
  
She felt a hand on her shoulder. "She's dead, Buffy," said Angel gently.  
  
"No, she can't be, not my Willow, she can't be dead! Spike!" At the panic in her voice, Spike shot Angel a warning glance, and knelt down beside her.  
  
"You breathe, I'll try to get her heart going."  
  
'Is she dead?' she asked silently.  
  
'You know the answer to that, love,' he replied into her mind, as gently as possible.  
  
They carried on going. 'It's this kind of time I always hope for a miracle,' she thought bitterly. 'Never happens like that, though, does it?'  
  
"Sometimes it does," said a soft, silvery voice.  
  
Spike and Buffy looked up at the familiar form. She had their daughter in her arms. "The Ladybard," she said reverently. "The hope of the world in its latter years. She fought bravely, gave her life for the Ladybard. She has earned her reward." She handed Stella back to Dawn. "Guard her well!"  
  
Spike and Buffy looked at each other, puzzled. Eventually, Spike asked, "Why Dawn? Why is it up to Dawn to guard her?"  
  
Estrellita smiled. "It is time," she said simply. She turned to Angel. "Souled One, you have a son. I know him well, for it was I who saved him from death." Angel bowed his head. "You know the prophecy?" Angel nodded, unable to find any words to say. The others gazed open-mouthed. "The prophecy will be fulfilled."  
  
The air shimmered, so bright that they closed their eyes. When they opened them, Spike, Buffy, Willow and Estrellita were gone.  
  
  
  
TBC… 


	14. Chapter 13

Ladybard chapter 13, by Slayergirl.  
  
Still got the tissues around?  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Estrellita carried Willow as though she was weightless. There was no sign of life, but Estrellita laid her on the bed in the room adjoining Buffy and Spike's former and present home. "She needs to rest," she said as she led them away.  
  
"But – she's…"  
  
"Sleeping, Lady. She's merely sleeping."  
  
"But – I thought…"  
  
"In your dimension, she is dead. Here, she is asleep. She will remain here and be healed and happy again. As will you," she smiled at them. "You have suffered much."  
  
"You mean we're not going back? Ever?" Spike asked.  
  
Estrellita smiled at him. "If I have business in your world, you may come with me. The Sorceress may not, as she is dead to your world."  
  
"But Connor…?"  
  
"Never really died. As I said, I saved him, that the prophecy might be fulfilled."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"But if I must go to your world, you may come with me and visit your loved ones – the Key, the Ladybard, the Watcher, the Souled One, the Faithful."  
  
"The Faithful?"  
  
"Xander," translated Buffy.  
  
"Oh! Right. The Faithful. Good name. But, let me get this right, this is our permanent home?"  
  
Estrellita nodded. "For all eternity. You found each other, and true love. And the Ladybard has at long last come into being. Your fight is over. Others must carry on."  
  
They felt a twinge of sadness at leaving their friends, Dawn, and their daughter. But in their hearts, they knew it was right.  
  
Buffy sat often by Willow, who lay as if dead. She told her fairy- stories, sometimes reading out Spike's latest poem. Sometimes Spike would sit with her, waiting silently for a change.  
  
Buffy sat with her one evening as soft rain fell against the windows. The air was fresh and sweet, and there was a sense of vibrancy. She was telling the story of Sleeping Beauty, as she often did. There was still no flicker of life. She sighed, and bent down to kiss the cool forehead as she always did.  
  
"Tara?" her voice was soft and drowsy. Her eyes were still closed, but there was a smile on her face. There was a faint pulse, and she was breathing.  
  
Buffy felt a touch on her hand. "Leave her now," said Estrellita. "I will sit with her tonight. Take some rest. She will not wake till morning."  
  
Buffy smiled, tucking the soft covers round her friend. "Night, Will!"  
  
"Night, Buffy," the drowsy voice replied.  
  
She ran to find Spike. "She's back! Willow's back! She spoke, she's breathing, her heart's beating!"  
  
He picked her up and swung her round, then stopped and hugged her. "She awake?"  
  
"Not yet. Not till tomorrow, Estrellita said." She hugged him fiercely. "Don't know how I'm going to sleep!"  
  
"Me neither," he said feelingly.  
  
Both, however, slept soundly as Estrellita watched over her charge, sending her sweet dreams of the land she'd wake up to.  
  
Buffy brought in breakfast the next morning. Willow was still sleeping. Estrellita, weary from watching, stood up. "Wake her," she said softly. "She is rested, and almost healed."  
  
"Almost?"  
  
Estrellita smiled. "The grief of losing her lover has not yet left her. But the corruption of magick and power is no longer there. She is safe and well, if a little sad. Wake her." She slipped out.  
  
Buffy set down the plate of food. "Willow? Will, wake up, I've brought you some breakfast."  
  
Warm eyes blinked up at her. "Buffy? Hey, breakfast in bed! Cool!"  
  
Willow. Willow was back. A sadder Willow, but still the girl Buffy knew from school. Still her best friend. She smiled, and perched on the bed. "Well, don't expect it every morning! How are you feeling?"  
  
"Great! Well, physically. I miss Tara… I had a dream last night. It still hurts, you know."  
  
"I know," she said softly, remembering how she'd felt after having to kill Angel. After he'd left her. After Spike had left.  
  
"Anyway, this looks great!" she said, tucking in hungrily. "Mm, scrummy!"  
  
Buffy laughed. "Not much wrong with you, Will!"  
  
Willow smiled. "Where are we, anyway?"  
  
"Another dimension. Spike and I have been here before."  
  
"Spike's here now?"  
  
"Next door, getting dressed."  
  
"Can I talk to him?"  
  
"Sure." She called him, and he poked his head round the door.  
  
"How's my favourite redhead?"  
  
"Okay, thanks. How are you?"  
  
"Fine. Look, about the thrall…"  
  
"It's okay. I understand. I know why you did it, and it was right to. Nothing could have saved me, but…" She stopped, stunned. "Nothing could have saved me? Why am I still alive? I should be dead!"  
  
"Different dimension. Think of it as paradise, it's easier that way," said Buffy, understanding the whole dead / not dead / not undead thing.  
  
"Oh. But we saved Stella, right? We did save her?"  
  
"No," smiled Spike. "You saved her."  
  
"Well, whatever," she blushed. "But she's okay?"  
  
"She's fine. Dawn's looking after her, and no doubt uncle Xander, uncle Giles and uncle Angel will interfere nicely too," laughed Buffy.  
  
"Uncle Angel!" she chuckled.  
  
"Yeah, don't let him hear you call him that," teased Spike.  
  
"Aw, come on. He's a big softie! He'd just cluck at me."  
  
"Gone soft," grinned Spike.  
  
"Must be fatherhood," she quipped sweetly. "I've heard it does that."  
  
He growled and turned his back on her. "Bad girl! I'm not soft!"  
  
Willow giggled. Buffy wrapped her arms round him from behind, resting her cheek against his back. "Mm, okay, maybe not."  
  
He smiled at her over his shoulder. "Breakfast time, wench! Leave Willow to get dressed in peace!"  
  
Willow smiled as they left the room, dressing in a dark green dress, a little like the blue one that Buffy had been wearing. Her own clothes were nowhere to be seen. She brushed her hair, and went through the door into Buffy and Spike's room, then through another door.  
  
She didn't recognise the third person sitting at the table. The stranger held out a cup to her. "Welcome, Sorceress."  
  
"Who – who are you?"  
  
"Estrellita. This is my land. Drink, and be refreshed!"  
  
Willow drank. The liquid was sweet, soothing, heartening. She really did feel refreshed and invigorated. She smiled at the dark-haired woman.  
  
"Go, now. Explore my land. You will not get lost. When you return, a proper room will be ready for you."  
  
Willow squared her shoulders, feeling as though she'd been given a new lease of life, and stepped into the sunlight.  
  
"Follow her," said Estrellita softly. "Follow at a distance. Do not let her know you are following! Only show yourselves when she calls for you." She smiled. "There is something for you to see."  
  
Buffy remembered the path. She'd taken it herself, the very first morning she'd ever been there. She followed silently with Spike until they reached the beach.  
  
A blonde-haired girl sat alone there, throwing pebbles into the sea. Willow gave a soft choke as she saw her. Then she ran. "Tara! Tara!"  
  
The blonde-haired girl turned her head, smiling a welcome. "Willow! You found me!"  
  
"Tara! I will always find you!" She sobbed and laughed into her arms. "Promise you'll never leave me again!"  
  
Tara wound her arms round the redhead at the familiar words. "Never. I'll never leave you again, I promise," she said as she kissed her.  
  
Buffy snuffled quietly, hoping Spike wouldn't notice, until she heard him sniffing. "You too, huh?" she whispered. He blushed, something he was still unused to in his non-vampire state, and nodded. "Told you you'd gone soft," she said, wiping away her tears.  
  
"You and me both," he laughed shakily, reaching out to hold her. They hugged for a while, then made to move away to give the two witches some privacy. But Willow looked up.  
  
"We should tell Buffy and Spike!" she said excitedly.  
  
Buffy and Spike froze in their tracks.  
  
"They're here too?" asked Tara. "Let's go find them!"  
  
Willow jumped up. "Buffy! Spike!"  
  
They came out sheepishly. Tara ran out to meet them. "I'm s-so glad you're here too!" she said, hugging them. "I was s-so l-lonely!"  
  
"Not lonely any more," whispered Willow, gazing at her adoringly and taking her hand. "You'll never be lonely again!"  
  
TBC… (You'll see why!) 


	15. Chapter 14

Ladybard chapter 14, by Slayergirl.  
  
If you're only reading for the spuffyness, now would be a good time to quit! Spike and Buffy do pop in and out of the rest of the story, but from now on it deals mainly with the other characters left in Sunnydale (and guests), in particular the Ladybard herself and the fulfilment of the prophecy.  
  
Also, if you already think it's too mushy and sentimental – well, apart from some violence (and a little questionable language) later on, it stays just as mushy. What can I say? I'm in a mushy mood. If it's not for you – fine! But… I wanted to write this, I want it to be the way it is. And it's mushy.  
  
You have been warned!  
  
If, on the other hand, you decide to carry on reading – I hope you enjoy it!  
  
Slayergirl.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
The dark-haired girl lashed out at the punch-bag, a determined look on her face. Her trainer nodded approvingly. "You're doing well, Stella. Almost as good as your mother. Maybe you should try training with real vampires!"  
  
"Like she did?" Stella laughed. "Well, Uncle Angel's coming to visit, maybe I should ask him!"  
  
Giles smiled at her. "Good idea. Er – is Connor coming?"  
  
To his gratification, Stella blushed. "Um – I don't know… haven't asked Auntie Dawn…"  
  
He hid another smile. Stella was very like Buffy, apart from having dark hair. She obviously took her colouring from her father. Buffy would have been pleased to note, also, that she had her father's nose and high cheekbones. 'All in all,' thought Giles, 'she's a beautiful girl. Buffy and Spike would be proud of her.'  
  
Of course, she also had their strength – slayer strength melded with vampire strength. And Giles had trained her to slayer standards, even though she hadn't been called. 'Sunnydale needs a slayer,' he thought. 'Now they've got a super-slayer.' The demon community was even more petrified of Stella than they had been of her mother and father.  
  
Connor seemed to be unusually strong, as well. Giles enjoyed taking over his training when he came to visit, as he had never entirely got rid of his prejudice against Wesley. 'Competent with a capital 'in',' he thought dryly.  
  
"Giles?"  
  
"Sorry, Stella. Just – thinking."  
  
"About my mom?"  
  
He nodded. "And your father. And how proud they'd be of you."  
  
She sighed. "I wish I could remember them. I've got some pictures that Auntie Dawn took, and some she drew. But it's not the same." She hugged Giles. "You and Auntie Dawn – you're like my parents. Always there, always supportive. I don't know what I'd do without you!"  
  
"Well, well," said Giles bashfully. "Do you want a lift home? I'd like to talk to Angel."  
  
"Sure." She picked up her bag, then turned and smiled at him. His breath caught in his throat; her smile was so like Buffy's. "Cookie?"  
  
"Er – no, no, thank you."  
  
Dawn made Giles a cup of tea as Stella ran and showered. "How's it going?" she asked.  
  
"Good. She's nimble on her feet, resourceful, cunning, quick- thinking… and, might I say, well brought up!"  
  
Dawn laughed. "I'm flattered! But I meant, with you. Do you have a life apart from Stella's?"  
  
The question stung him, mostly because he knew it was fair. He was so wrapped up in his new charge, he did nothing else. But it beat brooding over losing Buffy. That had shaken him more than anything in the world. He loved her, truly. She was the daughter he never had, and he loved her. And he still missed her, years down the line. She'd been the centre of his life, and not even her daughter, so like her in many ways, could replace her in his heart.  
  
"Training takes it out of you," he muttered. "I don't have much energy for other things. I'm not as young as I was. And I've no idea what she'll have to face."  
  
"None of us is getting any younger, Giles," said Dawn softly. It still stunned him to think that Dawn, a woman in her thirties, who had begged him for sweets as a child, was in reality thousands of years old.  
  
He grinned boyishly all of a sudden. "You should know!"  
  
She laughed. "And here, unless I am much mistaken, is someone else who knows." She opened the door and was immediately swept up into a bear hug. "Hello, Angel!"  
  
"Hi! How's my little Dawn?"  
  
"Little! I'm thousands of years older than you!" she teased.  
  
"Still about half my size, though, so you still count as being little!"  
  
She cuffed him playfully. "Come on in… Connor, hi!"  
  
She left Giles talking to them and ran upstairs. "Stella? Uncle Angel and Connor are here."  
  
She heard a desperate squawk and put her head round the door. "Can't find my hairbrush! God, I look a mess!" she said, obviously flustered.  
  
Dawn laughed. "You're sitting on your hairbrush, love. And you look as delightful as ever."  
  
Stella blushed. "Really, do I look okay?"  
  
"You look lovely! Anyone would think the president had come to visit! It's only Angel and Connor."  
  
"Well, yes, but, well, don't want to look a fright!" she stammered nervously.  
  
Dawn sat beside her. "Out with it. You like Connor, don't you?" Nobody had told either Connor or Stella about the prophecy.  
  
"Uh – well, that is, I…" she looked helplessly at her aunt. "I don't know. I mean, I do, but…"  
  
"Scary, huh?" Stella nodded. Dawn patted her hand. "Well. Remember, I'm right behind you. He's a nice guy. And at least he's human…"  
  
"Well, yes, of course… oh!"  
  
Dawn smiled. "Yes, both his parents were vampires, and you father also was. And Buffy dated Angel for quite some time! It might run in the family…"  
  
Stella looked at her curiously. "Did you ever have a crush on either of them?"  
  
Dawn flushed slightly, but her eyes twinkled. "Yes, both of them. I think it's a younger sister thing."  
  
"You had a crush on Angel? Does he know?"  
  
Dawn rolled her eyes. "You tell Angel about that, and I'll tell Connor about you!"  
  
Stella smiled. "Okay, won't tell a soul. Or anything without a soul, either."  
  
They went downstairs just as Giles was leaving. Stella and Connor went to see him off. Unbeknownst to them, Dawn and Angel watched them from the window.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"He was very excited to be coming – and I don't think it's entirely due to your excellent hospitality or Giles' training," he grinned.  
  
"She admitted she likes him."  
  
"Just as well."  
  
"Mm. They make a pretty pair," she said, blissfully unaware that she and Angel, framed by the window, also made a stunning couple.  
  
  
  
TBC… 


	16. Chapter 15

Ladybard chapter15, by Slayergirl.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Estrellita called to Buffy and Spike. "I am going to your world. The time has come for one of your loved ones to leave their life as they know it and join you here. Do you wish to come? You may help me, if you will it so."  
  
They looked at each other, and nodded, wondering whose time had come.  
  
*** ***  
  
"Shut up, Angel!" hissed Dawn. "Fighting at a wedding is not the done thing!"  
  
"You started it," he groused. "I don't understand your problem with it! You say you love me, that you'd never leave me, no matter what, that you'd spend your whole life with me. So why not let me claim you?"  
  
"Because I don't want you to claim me. Now be quiet, and don't spoil their reception! God, can't you even behave at your own son's wedding?"  
  
"But why? You said you had no problem with claiming in general, the idea of it. And Spike claimed Buffy," he whined.  
  
"Doesn't mean I want to be claimed. Oh, look, doesn't Stella look lovely? They look so happy together!" she said as she waved them off on honeymoon, desperately trying to change the subject.  
  
"Why not?" he persisted as the guests started drifting away.  
  
"Maybe I think you should just trust me!" she said, knowing it wasn't the real reason.  
  
"I do trust you!"  
  
"No you don't! You think I'll be like Cordy, not able to deal with it, the whole soul thing. Well, I can!"  
  
"Dawn…"  
  
"Just shut up and stop being such an asshole! I'm going home." She turned on her heel and left him, angry, and hating herself for fighting with him. And for not being able to tell him the real reason she didn't want him to claim her.  
  
She took Mr. Pointy out of her handbag, walking quickly but cautiously. She found her thoughts turning to Spike and Buffy.  
  
She was almost face to face with the vampire before she was even aware of its presence. She clutched the stake, waiting for the vampire to move. He walked round her slowly, carefully, not noticing the stake. "Well now, what's a pretty girl like you doing here?" he leered.  
  
"What's it to you?" she replied, tensing.  
  
"Nothing. Still gonna kill you," he shrugged. Then he attacked.  
  
She almost had the stake at his chest when he twisted it out of her grasp and threw it out of reach. Shoving her against a gravestone he pulled her head back, ready to bite. She started to regret deciding to take the short-cut home.  
  
'Buffy!' She thought as she struggled. 'What would Buffy have done?' She closed her eyes as he bent his head, unable to fight back. 'Spike!' she thought desperately, mentally screaming for him.  
  
Then the vampire was gone. She heard a sickening crunch, which she imagined to be breaking bones, then a small thump. She opened her eyes.  
  
There was another vampire, standing the other side of a screen of dust. But this one held his arms out to her.  
  
She went to him, falling into his arms. "You came! You came for me," she said, hugging him.  
  
"Sh, Nibblet. Yeah, I got you. Come on, let me take you home."  
  
"How come you're here? Where have you been? Where's Buffy?" demanded Dawn as she walked beside him.  
  
"I came because – well, it's a bit complicated, they're all linked together. We've been in another dimension, the one we went to before. We're allowed to come back once in a while, for – certain purposes. Buffy isn't far away. But I came to find you because you were in danger."  
  
"How did you know?" she whispered, noticing for the first time that the air seemed to shimmer round him.  
  
He smiled. "You're still bound to me, Nibblet."  
  
She looked at him sorrowfully. "Angel wants to claim me."  
  
"You're together now?" He seemed surprised. "You don't seem too happy about the idea."  
  
"No. I don't want him to."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I'm bound to you. I want it to stay that way. But he doesn't know that."  
  
"Oh." He ruffled her hair. "Different kind of claim."  
  
"Yeah, but… won't it break your claim on me?"  
  
He smiled. "Does it matter, when I'm in a different dimension?"  
  
She nodded, slowly. "Somehow – I think it matters even more."  
  
"Well, I can't make your decisions for you."  
  
"I know. So, where's Buffy? Why did they let you out?"  
  
He frowned. "When Estrellita comes to collect someone to take to her dimension, we can come with her."  
  
Dawn felt cold suddenly. "And – you're collecting – me?"  
  
Spike looked at her, stunned. "Hell, no! Buffy's with him now!"  
  
*** ***  
  
Giles looked up at the shining figure as she entered. He was old and weary. He'd known it would be soon.  
  
"I knew it was nearly time," he said softly. "But I'd no idea they'd send an angel to bear me to my rest."  
  
She laughed, quietly. "I'm no angel, Giles. You of all people should know that."  
  
He smiled. "You were always my angel, Buffy. The daughter I never had. Now your own daughter is married, and has no more need of me. It's time."  
  
She perched on the arm of the chair. "What were you doing?"  
  
"Oh, studying the stars. There seems to be some planetary movement. I was wondering what it was. Old habits die hard. Wesley thinks it's nothing, but I'm not so sure. Maybe it foretells another apocalypse… maybe something more benign…"  
  
Dawn burst in. "Thank God! I thought you'd have gone!" she said, hugging him. "Couldn't let you go without saying goodbye…" Spike stepped through the door, followed by Estrellita. Dawn turned to her sister. "Hey."  
  
Buffy's eyes misted over as she hugged her. "All grown up!" she said wistfully.  
  
"It is time. We must go," murmured Estrellita. She turned to Dawn. "Your time will come. Watch for me – for us – when you are weary." Then the light blinded her momentarily.  
  
She was alone in Giles' study. High in the cloudless sky, another star sparkled on its course.  
  
  
  
TBC… (Did I trick you into thinking it was Dawn they were after? ( No, I wouldn't let Angel be lonely!) 


	17. Chapter 16

Ladybard chapter 16, by Slayergirl.  
  
Here comes the part that is total and utter fantasy, and whimsical to boot.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Dawn nestled against Angel as she watched her niece trying to change the twins' nappies. "So, what are you calling them?" she asked.  
  
"Dastardly and Muttley," joked Xander.  
  
Stella rolled her eyes. "Just ignore Uncle Xander," she advised the squalling babies. He grinned at her.  
  
"Pinky and Perky? Tom and Jerry?"  
  
She gave him a stern look. "One boy, one girl, remember?"  
  
"So, what are you calling them?" repeated Dawn .  
  
"Seren and Taliesin."  
  
Angel spluttered. "And Connor agreed?" he asked incredulously.  
  
"Well, Connor's not the best name out," she said pointedly.  
  
"Perfectly good Gaelic name!" he said, ruffled.  
  
"Well, Seren and Taliesin are perfectly good Celtic names!" she said stubbornly. "And yes, Connor agreed. Eventually."  
  
Angel shook his head as Dawn giggled. "No arguing with you, is there?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Can't change your mind?"  
  
"No."  
  
He rolled his eyes. "Just as stubborn as your mother. And your father, come to that!"  
  
She grinned. "Not one to disappoint!"  
  
Cordelia smiled wisely. "I think they're great names. Appropriate…"  
  
The others looked at her, puzzled. But she had a far-away look on her face, and they decided it was best not to ask.  
  
"So, Connor's out patrolling?" Stella smiled at her father-in-law and nodded. "Glad to see you're keeping him hard at work."  
  
"Oh, always," she laughed. "Always something to be done."  
  
'Motherhood suits her,' thought Dawn, with a pang of regret. There would be no miracle child for her.  
  
Angel hugged her, wondering why she looked so sad. 'If only she'd let me claim her…' he thought. But, 'no, Spike was there first, she's bound to him as a sister. I don't want to break that. Something so precious…' He regretted that. That she was so close to Spike that he could feel when she was in danger and rescue her. And he envied her the brother-sister relationship she had with Spike. "Must be nice to have a brother and sister. She's got both… or had both.' He gave an unneeded sigh.  
  
Dawn nudged him, waggling her eyebrows at Xander and Cordelia. "Think they'll get back together?"  
  
He smiled. "Hope so!" Cordy had loved him, he knew that. But she needed more than he could give her. Dawn – well, Dawn was different. It hurt him, sometimes, that she needed nothing from him, asked nothing of him. But then again, it meant she was never disappointed.  
  
Dawn smiled as she watched her niece. Then sighed again, remembering how she'd watched Buffy when Stella was first born, watching Spike play with her – so proud of her! Her eyes misted. How she missed them! Since her mother died, Buffy had been a mother to her as much as she could. Spike had always been there, quietly supportive, like an unmoveable rock. And Giles – Giles had always been the father figure in her life. It was two years since he'd gone. The ache of missing them grew day by day, never knowing if or when they would return. She was tired. Even watching Stella, humming softly to the twins, made her tired.  
  
Angel rested his head on hers. "Tired, sweetheart?"  
  
"Mm."  
  
If he was honest with himself, he was tired too. Maybe it was time for bed… or maybe it was time for a change. He yawned. "Me too. Might hit the hay."  
  
"Not waiting up for Connor?" asked Stella.  
  
He smiled at her. "Honey, I would, but I'm so tired. Even vampires need to sleep."  
  
She hugged him, then held the twins out to him. "Kiss them goodnight!" she ordered.  
  
He gave each a peck obediently. "Goodnight, Seren. Goodnight, Taliesin. Sorry your ma's got no more taste in names than a flea."  
  
She clucked at him, shooing him out, much to the amusement of the others.  
  
"Think I might join him," said Dawn.  
  
"Not too much joining, mind!" teased Xander. "You know what happens if he gets a happy!"  
  
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Like I'd even try. Like he'd try! Now, I'm going to bed – to sleep!" she said firmly, following Angel after having kissed the twins and Stella goodnight.  
  
Xander and Cordelia stayed with Stella a little while, laughing and chatting. Then Xander decided to go home, and Cordelia went to bed. Stella waited up for Connor, alone except for the twins.  
  
No, not alone. She felt their presence before she turned round. There they were, shimmering silver in the soft light.  
  
"Stella!" it was Buffy who spoke. "All grown up! And with children!"  
  
"Mom?"  
  
"Seems strange, doesn't it? That we've never spoken before. I wish – I could have watched you grow up…"  
  
"It's okay," she whispered. "I understand. I'm just glad I've finally got to see you, talk to you… you too," she said, turning to Spike.  
  
"Strange to think my little girl is a mother," he said softly. "May I hold them?"  
  
She smiled. "This is Seren," she said, handing him her daughter, "and this is Taliesin."  
  
He raised an eyebrow. "Interesting choice of names!"  
  
She smiled. "Don't you start! Angel didn't like it much either. Cordy did, though. She said it was appropriate…"  
  
"Didn't say I didn't like them," he murmured. "Just – different."  
  
"Buffy and Spike aren't exactly normal names," laughed her mother.  
  
"'Scuse me, but Spike is only a nickname!"  
  
"So what's your real name, then?" she asked her father curiously.  
  
"William."  
  
"But that was forgotten many moons ago," added Buffy, taking the twins from his arms. "Beautiful – so beautiful," she murmured as she looked down at them. "They have such a future…" She stood, lost in thought. Then she looked at her daughter. "We have a task…"  
  
Stella nodded. "I guessed. After Giles went, she withdrew a lot. She missed him. And he's been – well, fading. I think they'll be glad to go. In fact, I think they may be expecting it." She smiled. "Cordy hinted at it."  
  
Buffy laid the twins back down. "I wish we could stay longer," she said as she hugged her daughter. "But we can only stay so long."  
  
"I know. It's okay."  
  
Spike wrapped his arms around her, holding her silently for a long time. "You'll see us again."  
  
She looked at him steadily. "The next time it'll be me, won't it? Me and Connor."  
  
"I don't know," he said honestly. "If it is, you'll know. But your greatest battle is yet to come, that I do know. If you have to leave the twins, then leave them with Cordy and Xander, now they're back together."  
  
"Back… but they're not!"  
  
Buffy grinned. "Oh, they are. I saw them kissing on the doorstep!"  
  
"Bye, love," whispered Spike, squeezing her hand. "See you soon. Take care. And good luck."  
  
"And always watch your back," added Buffy, kissing her goodbye.  
  
She watched them go to Angel and Dawn's room, and opened the front door, stepping outside to wait for Connor, who came running.  
  
"Just missed them," she said as he reached her. Then she burst into tears. 


	18. Chapter 17

Ladybard chapter 17, by Slayergirl  
  
Please suspend all credibility, and remember what you believed in when you were a child. I'm indulging my whimsiness – please join me, and relive all those dreams you had!  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Dawn awoke in Angel's arms, as she often did. She blinked at the unexpected sunlight that filtered in through the window. 'Close the curtains!' she thought in a panic. 'No curtains, oh my God…' then a soft laugh made her look up.  
  
"Sleep well, Dawnie?"  
  
"Buffy! There are no curtains, Angel…"  
  
"Angel what?" he murmured sleepily. "Morning Buffy. Morning Spike. Morning – uh – Estrellita?"  
  
Dawn snapped her head up. "Oh! Hi, didn't see you there – how come he's not burning up?"  
  
"Different dimension, sweetheart," Angel smiled. "I think we're home."  
  
"Possibly," said Estrellita. "You're here on sufferance. You must prove yourself worthy, just as Bard did – he found true love, and brought hope to the world in the form of the Ladybard. But first, come and eat and drink." She smiled at Dawn. "But you are home, Key – the Key no longer."  
  
"What am I then?" she asked.  
  
"What we all are," said Estrellita cryptically. "Come now, join your friends for breakfast."  
  
There was much laughter at that meal. Willow and Tara giggled childishly at each other, licking honey off each other's fingers. Spike and Buffy seemed to function as a single entity, feeding each other and finishing each other's sentences. Giles, however, was a little withdrawn.  
  
It made Angel feel a little uneasy. 'Poor Giles,' he thought. 'The only one on his own.' He thought of Jenny, guilt streaking through him like fire. He knew it was because of this that he had to pass the test, prove himself worthy again. 'If only it could be undone! If only I could bring her back!' he thought wretchedly.  
  
"Say it aloud," commanded Estrellita, making him jump. "Say what you wished for."  
  
Angel struggled to find the words he wanted, but turned to Giles anyway. "I'm sorry," he said. "It's not enough – it'll never be enough – for taking from you the woman you love. It should never have happened. If…" he swallowed. "If I could wish anything – I'd wish that she could share Willow and Tara's reward, and be here with you, always. It hurts – to see you alone. And she did as much as the rest of us to save the world."  
  
Giles looked at him, speechless. "I – well, I – look, it's a long time ago, and – I know you feel bad about it…"  
  
Estrellita laid a hand on their shoulders. "Well said," she said to Angel. "Yes, you are right, you are here because you fought to save the world from darkness, all of you. You wished well, Souled One, and you have passed the test." Then she turned to Giles. "Would you wish the same? That she should spend eternity with you?" she asked softly.  
  
"Well, I…" He looked up and smiled, hopeful. "Only if it was what she wanted too."  
  
Estrellita laughed softly, motioning to the woman at the door. "Why don't you ask her?"  
  
*** ***  
  
Eventually, the hugging and kissing of reunion died down as Jenny joined them at the table. Dawn, unable to contain her curiosity any longer, decided to ask the questions she longed to know the answers to. "So, where are we, exactly? What are we? Who and what are you?" she asked Estrellita.  
  
She smiled. "You know that this is a different dimension. It is my own, I rule it. Some may say that I am a god, but I do not care for that title. Gods are about power and worship. I – care only for peace and joy, harmony and concord. I am able to grant wishes, if I choose…"  
  
"So, are you a vengeance demon, then? Or is this some kind of wish dimension?" asked Dawn.  
  
"Neither," she laughed. "Have none of you guessed? What you are? The Seer knew – and yet you did not?" She gazed at them. "Think!" she urged them. They gazed back at her blankly. She turned to Spike. "The names of your line, Bard. What are they?"  
  
"Stella, my daughter; Seren and Taliesin, my grandchildren."  
  
"And?" she pressed. "What do those names mean to you?"  
  
"Well, Stella means 'star'," he said.  
  
"So does Seren!" added Jenny.  
  
"And Taliesin?" asked Estrellita gently.  
  
"'Shining brow'," said Giles. "Wait, before I came here…"  
  
"The stars!" said Spike. "You were tracing the movements of some stars…"  
  
"…Another one joined them when you left…" interrupted Dawn.  
  
"…And Estrellita means, uh, 'little star' in Spanish!" he finished triumphantly.  
  
"Quite," smiled Estrellita.  
  
"We're all stars? I always thought that was a rather fanciful notion," said Giles dryly.  
  
"In every fairytale, there is a grain of truth," she said softly. "Remember the rhyme… 'Star bright, star light, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish I might have the wish I wish tonight'?" They all nodded. "Most of the rest of that is forgotten. It is part of the ritual incantation which invokes me."  
  
"Well!" said Giles. You learn something new every day."  
  
The others were too stunned to comment. Then Angel began to laugh. "Angelus the scourge of Europe becomes a star and goes to live happily ever after in a perfect dimension where nothing ever goes wrong? How did I land that one, when I should be in hell?"  
  
"You've tried to make amends," she said simply. "As did Bard." She placed a hand on Willow's shoulder. "Ultimately, it is the Sorceress you have to thank."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
"Uh – well, I made a wish, using the rhyme, thingy – just idly wishing that Buffy and Spike could get along better, face up to how they felt about each other. I didn't know it would turn out like this. Guess it kick-started the whole thing," said Willow bashfully.  
  
"I'm not complaining!" said Angel. "Beats going to hell, anyway."  
  
"Mm," agreed Spike. "With you on that one. Being a good boy does have its advantages…"  
  
"And more than just avoiding hell," teased Buffy, waggling her eyebrows at him.  
  
"So," said Jenny. "You're the evening star, then?" Estrellita nodded.  
  
"There are strange things written about this dimension," said Giles pensively. "I read the prophecies about the Ladybard. But although I'd heard of it before that, I never believed that the dimension itself ever existed. I just thought the writers were making it all up – or were stoned. It always sounded too good to be true, the kind of place you'd make up if you were a kid. And I never had proof of any kind until Spike showed me a flower he picked here."  
  
Estrellita smiled. "I prefer to keep it that way. Mine is a shadowy dimension, hard to find, that none can enter without my help. And equally, none can leave without my help. Not that they wish to, usually!"  
  
"You can see why!" said Willow.  
  
"I always used to think people became stars when they died," said Tara dreamily. "When I was a child. My family laughed at me for it. But I kept on dreaming, hoping for something better…"  
  
Willow hugged her, thinking of her girlfriend's repressive family. "Your dream came true, honey," she said softly. "But you were always my star."  
  
TBC… 


	19. Chapter 18

Ladybard chapter 18, by Slayergirl.  
  
Nearly there, I promise! Watch out for the bad language – that Stella's a foul-mouthed little thing sometimes!  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
"Weapons?" asked Stella as she handed the twins over to Cordelia and Xander for safekeeping.  
  
"Check," replied Connor.  
  
"Good luck!" said Xander, knowing that this would be their most important battle. He'd helped Buffy avert several apocalypses. But this one was different. The vampire activity had given it away. Stella and Connor had dusted hundreds in the past few weeks. Now, there was the Hellmouth problem. The odds weren't good – there were only two of them. But Stella – well, both of them, they were special.  
  
Xander wrapped an arm round Cordelia's waist as they watched them go. "We'll never see them again." He said softly.  
  
"One day," she murmured, getting into the car. "We'll see them again somewhere, some day."  
  
*** ***  
  
They knew the Hellmouth would open, and that there were demons trying to hunt them down. The prophecies had told them as much. They also knew the demons would go after the twins if they had the chance. "'They are destined for great things'," Cordelia had said. "'They will be warriors, defending the earth… defending humans from themselves'." 'Nice,' thought Stella. 'But right now, we need to defend humans from pretty much everything else.'  
  
They got into position, waiting for nightfall. "Cordy and Xander and the twins should be on their way to LA by now," said Connor.  
  
"Yep. On our own now," replied his wife.  
  
"We might not make it."  
  
"True. But at least they'll be safer away from here."  
  
"I know."  
  
The time ticked by slowly. Then all hell broke loose – literally.  
  
The fight was bloody – if you could call the liquid that escaped the demons blood. They were nightmarish creatures – everyone's worst nightmare, the monster under the bed you'd feared for years. Stella and Connor wondered if they were fighting fear itself as the demons morphed into ever more terrifying forms. Many of the demons were killed at their hands, but they knew they were losing ground. What could two of them do against so many?  
  
They redoubled their efforts, viciously ripping the stomachs out of the demons, gouging their eyes out, slitting their throats, until they were covered in demon blood and slime and gore. But still the demons came.  
  
"God, how many are there?" wondered Stella aloud, grappling hand to – hand, for want of a better word, with one of the demons.  
  
"Too many!" panted Connor. "We can't hold on for ever! There are just too many!" Both of them knew the situation was desperate. They were still losing ground.  
  
"Got to keep going!" she ground out. "Kill as many as possible. Do what you like, just make sure they die!" she said as she stabbed a demon in the stomach, twisting out the slime-covered blade. "God, you're revolting!" she said as she disembowelled it, and watched it dissolve.  
  
Just when they thought they could fight no longer, the demons started to cower away from them, whimpering and howling with fear. They looked at each other, bemused. Then turned around.  
  
They were dressed as warriors, the six who stood there, shining brightly. Starlight sparkled on the sharp edges of their swords, and their faces were grim, though timelessly beautiful. They saluted Stella and Connor.  
  
"So," smiled the woman Stella knew must be Estrellita, "you meet your destiny at last."  
  
"Didn't think we'd miss the final showdown, did you, princess?" asked her father. Then added, "this is our fight, too. It's what we always fought for."  
  
Stella was about to ask what they meant, but heard her mother scream, "Watch your back!" Stella spun round to see a huge creature appearing from the Hellmouth. Connor charged forward, but the creature simply flung him against the wall.  
  
Stella looked at the creature, her face twisted with rage. "You fucking bastard!" she screamed as she hacked at it in a fury. "You'll pay for that! I'll chop your bollocks off and ram them down your sodding, ugly throat! Then I'm going to slit you from nose to toes and watch you bleed all over the floor. You'll wish like buggery you'd never, EVER set eyes on me!"  
  
"Who – taught – my daughter – language – like that?" panted Buffy as they fought the demons. There was slime everywhere, but the tide had turned. The demons – all but the creature Stella was still hurling obscenities at whilst fighting – were afraid of them.  
  
"What is that thing?" asked Dawn.  
  
"Ruler of the dimension closest to ours via the Hellmouth," gritted out Giles. "Not exactly easy to kill."  
  
Stella battled on, though her fighting was more emotion than skill. She was aware that she was not alone in her fight.  
  
"So," said the woman to the creature. "We meet again, my nemesis."  
  
"Estrellita!" he spat out. "You should not have come here. Your meddling will avail you nothing."  
  
To Stella's surprise, Estrellita laughed. "I think not," she said sweetly. "For this is the Ladybard, and she will destroy you!" The creature faltered.  
  
Stella felt the woman's hand on her shoulder, and a tingling sensation rushed through her. She drew herself up, and saw the creature looking at her apprehensively. Estrellita handed her a silver sword. "Only that sword, in your hands, will kill him," she said softly. "Do it."  
  
Stella shook her hair back and raised the sword. Light skittered off it in all directions. She cried out, words never spoken before: "Ai goronom lei hathron ar sorome na gan!"  
  
"Hell, who taught her the words of power?" exclaimed Giles. "I never taught her magick, after Willow… uh…"  
  
Dawn grinned at him. "Willow and Tara taught me some. I taught her some. And you left the key to your bookcase in a really obvious place!"  
  
"Oh!"  
  
"Got a trick up her sleeve, I see," said Spike approvingly.  
  
"Yes, well, I had no idea she'd got at my magick books!" said Giles ruffled.  
  
"Sargon dei halome car rondar na lan!"  
  
"What's she saying?" whispered Buffy.  
  
"Harnooth lei haramon, harnooth na han!"  
  
"It's a spell," said Giles.  
  
Stella was still fighting the creature as she cried out the words.  
  
"Duh! I kind of gathered that!" called Buffy over her shoulder as she despatched the last demon. She turned to Estrellita. "Do we help her?"  
  
Estrellita shook her head. "No. Watch and wait. She will prevail."  
  
"An caramon cai ladoc ar vanion na lan!"  
  
Connor sat up, but found Angel holding him back. "She's fine. She'll be okay."  
  
"Harnooth! Harnooth! Caramon na lan!" She cried as she plunged the sword into its heart. She fell back into Estrellita's arms, leaving the sword in the creature's chest as it screamed in agony.  
  
"Infused with starlight and magick," explained Estrellita. "You have killed him."  
  
The creature was thrashing around, trying to get the sword out of its chest.  
  
"The Spell?" Stella asked. Estrellita nodded.  
  
"The Ladybard knows of right," she murmured to herself.  
  
Stella held out her arms towards the Hellmouth and started chanting:  
  
"Cara ga halamon, haran ga lo,  
  
Hira fan tagon, Hira fan so.  
  
Halamon, Halamon, Taran ar noth!  
  
Halamon, Halamon, Taran go soth!"  
  
  
  
There was a flash of blinding light, then everything went dark.  
  
"Did I do that wrong," asked Stella nervously.  
  
"No," laughed Estrellita merrily. "You did it just right!"  
  
*** ***  
  
Off to the epilogue, now, to find out what she's done! 


	20. Epilogue

Ladybard, Epilogue, by Slayergirl  
  
This really is it – no more!  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Stella helped Connor to his feet. "Well, we did it!"  
  
"You did it," he said softly. "I never realised that's what the prophecies meant – that you'd close the Hellmouth, once and for all!"  
  
She smiled lovingly at him. "Neither did I, until Estrellita came. Then somehow, I just knew."  
  
He hugged her. "Well, we've saved the world, and our line is destined to save humans from themselves. We've done pretty well, haven't we?"  
  
She nodded, and smiled. "Time to go?"  
  
"Time to go," he agreed.  
  
They walked, hand in hand, towards the pulsing light where Estrellita stood waiting for them, knowing that their work was done:  
  
No one need ever fear the night again.  
  
*** *** *** ***  
  
Endnote: Firstly, to everyone who got this far, thanks for reading it! Secondly, I realised when reading it back to myself how Narnia-esque bits of this were, and how Discworld-esque others were! It wasn't intentional, but it just goes to show how much the things you read influence you.  
  
Oh, and Stella, Estrellita and the twins are mine. Please don't use them without asking me first! But everyone else is Joss's, and I have no claim to them.  
  
Once again, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my whimsies!  
  
Slayergirl. 


End file.
